Skip to main content

Full text of "Inside Facts of Stage and Screen (February 1, 1930)"

See other formats


ESTABLISHED 1924 


EDITED BY JACK JOSEPHS 


PRICE 10 CENTS 

ONLY THEATRICAL NEWSPAPER ON THE PACIFIC COAST 


Vol. XI Entered as SeconI Class Matter, April 29, 1927, at Post- 

office, Los Angeles, Calif., under Act of March 3, 1879. 


Saturday, February 1, 1930 


Published Every Saturday at 800-801 Warner Bros. Down- 
town Building, 401 West Seventh St., Los Angeles, Calif. 


No. 5 


LATIN-AMERICANS PROTEST 
SPANISH-LANGUAGE PICTURES 



VAL VALENTE’S MUSIC 

Roof Garden Cafe, San Francisco 


COMEDIANS CLOSE 


TO BUILD THEATRE 


WILL PRESENT 



III MASS MEET 

Highly optimistic reports were 
emanating this week from the 
meetings of the Actors’ and Pro- 
ducers’ branches of the Academy 
of Motion Picture Arts and Sci- 
ences concerning the proposed 
new contract for picture players, 
first news of which was printed 
exclusively in Inside Facts last 
week. 

A subcommittee of the main 
committee met again this week, in 
a private room at the Roosevelt 
Hotel, and with members sworn 
to absolute secrecy concerning 
some phases of the discussions. 

This subcommittee will meet 
again next Monday for a final 
ironing out of several points, and 
then, it is planned, the proposed 
new contract will be presented to 
a mass meeting of Plollywood ac- 
tors to be held in some large hall, 
possibly the Hollywood stadium. 
This meeting, it was stated, will 
be open to all picture actors and 
actresses, irrespective of whether 
or not they are affiliated with the 
Academy, with Equity, or with 
any other .organization. 

Hours of Work 

No definite date has been set 
for the meeting, as the framers of 
the new document wish to have 
it in absolute shape and with ab- 
solute accord among themselves 
before anything is submitted for 
public approval. 

To date the main work has been 
on minor points, largely of a de- 
finitive nature and with a view to 
solidifying contractural practices in 
Hollywood by specific terms. All 
this work, it is said, has gone off 
with an unbroken smoothness and 
accord. 

The main point proposed for the 
new contract is a limitation on 
the hours of work per week for 
freelance players, which, of course, 
would regulate the hours of work 
for contract players in the main. 
Some of the members of the sub- 
committee are known to be ad- 
verse to such a clause, but it is 
the general feeling that the ma- 
jority will approve it. Various re- 
ports were in circulation that the 
majority view was for a 60-hour 
work week, but several sources in- 
directly intimated that this report 
was amiss. 

Committee Personnel 

The main committee, which met 
at dinner in the Roosevelt Hotel a 
week ago last Tuesday, had pres- 
ent Jack Warner, Irving Thalberg, 
Sol Wurtzel, Mike Levee, Fred 
Beetson, Conrad Nagel, Lawrence 
Grant, Sam Hardy, Mitchell Lewis, 
(Continued on Page 2) 


Brunks Comedians closed their 
season in San Bernardino last 
week, most of the company hop- 
ping into L. A. 


VIRGINIA IN CAST 


Virginia Bruce, Paramount con- 
tract player, has been assigned the 
role of the siren in Charles 
“Buddy” Rogers’ Paramount pic- 
ture, “Safety in Numbers.” Three 
other girls assigned to the picture 
are Kathryn Crawford, Carol Lom- 
bard and Josephine Dunn. 


FILM PREXY HERE 

Amedee J. Van Beuren, presi- 
dent of the Van Bueren Enter- 
prises, arrived this week from New 
York with Hiram S. Brown, presi- 
dent of the RKO studios. Van 
Bueren Enterprises catalogue in- 
cludes “Topics of the Day,” 
Aesop’s Fables, Smitty and His 
Pals, and Sportlights, all distrib- 
uted through Patber, and Walter 
Futter’s Curiosities distributed 
through FBO. 


“Montana,” M-G-M starring ve- 
hicle for Joan Crawford, has been 
changed to “Montana Moon.” 


Listed in the spring building 
program of Fox West Coast Thea- 
tres is a new 2000-seat theatre for 
San Luis Obispo. This company 
is already interested, with W. B. 
Martin, in the Elmo and Obispo 
theatres there. Policy will be 
talking pictures with the installa- 
tion of projecting equipment to 
care for Grandeur (large size) 
film and building plans will in- 
clude facilities for the handling 
of stage presentations. 


FORESEE BAD 
FEELING AS 
ONE RESULT 

Hollywood's attempt to capi- 
talize the great Latin- American 
market for talking pictures has 
aroused a bitterness among Latin- 
Americans which will culminate 
this week in a formal protest 
filed by official representatives in 
Los Angeles of the 21 Spanish- 
speaking republics of North and 
South America,* 

These representatives have got 
together and framed a protest to 
the talking picture producers of 
Hollywood for presentation at an 
early date, according to authen- 
tic information to Inside Facts. 

As a result of Hollywood’s 
present trend and decision, it is 
stated, there will be aroused “an 
inevitable resentment of the Span- 
ish-American audiences,” with a 
resurrection of “political and so- 
cial differences of long standing 
and fruitful of acute controversy,” 
and which may, if persisted in, 
“result in disaster, financial and 
artistic” and “create a situation 
difficult of solution and perhaps 
impossible of reconcilation.” 
Influenced by Actors 
The trouble arises over the 
language used by actors in these 
Spanish versions. Influenced, it 
is claimed, by the legitimate 
school of Spanish actors who use 
what, is known as “Castillian 
Spanish,” Hollywood has decreed 
that Castillian shall be the stan- 
dard language for talkies. This 
is the official court language of 
Spain, used by a small minority 
of Spanish people in Spain it- 
self and used, it is said, not at 
all by Spanish- Americans, offi- 
cially or otherwise. 

This ruling has the effect not 
only of shutting out from em- 
ployment a host of Spanish- 
American talent speaking in the 
idiom used by their peoples for 
400 years, but also stirs up pre- 
judices that have been rife al- 
niost as long, respect for which 
is of real importance to Holly- 
wood producers, diplomats aver. 

Rodriguez Explains 
Acting for the large group that 
has taken the matter vitally to 
heart, Jose Rodriguez, well known 
writer and musician associated 
with Earle C. Anthony and his 
two National Broadcasting sta- 
tion KFI and KECA, has framed 
a joint letter of protest which is 
to be presented to the producers 
immediately. 

“This matter is not entirely con- 
fined to talking pictures,” com- 
ments Rodriguez. “Radio is also 
concerned, and I feel sure that 
(Continued on Page 2) 



PAGE TWO 


INSIDE FACTS OF STAGE AND SCREEN 


SATURDAY, FEB. 1, 1930 


‘NEW MOON’ BREAKS HOUSE RECORD 

TBPS 51!, 10 IN 


ESTELLE MATTERN 



1^^ : ' ' 
Mw HHBilMBWIfc i w- 

: i 

MMjBgi " - ^ 

■Mr - 

is , 


ieillglili« 


EBBR 


—I— 

llliillisa 


.. ” 


m 




Meyer Golden’s Dance Fables 
Featuring 

ESTELLE MATTERN 

and 

Stuart Farrington 

with 

Fred Taggart — George Spanover 
Dolly O’Brien 

Now R. K. O. Circuit 



IEFII 

II TALKIE PROTEST 


(Continued from Page 1) 
broadcasters will see the wisdom 
of giving careful and intelligent 
study to this far-reaching situa- 
tion.” 

The following is the text of 
the communication , framed for 
signature by the . consuls and other 
Spanish- American leaders: 

“A question of the utmost im- 
portance confronts all Spanish- 
speaking workers whose liveli- 
hood depends on their employ- 
ment by producers of talking pic- 
tures in Hollywood. 

Denied Employment 

“It is reported from many and 
authoritative sources, that Holly- 
wood producers of Spanish talk- 
ing films have decided to employ 
only actors and actresses who 
speak the official court-language 
of Spain, the so-called ‘Castillian 
Spanish.’ As a result of this al- 
leged decision, thousands of ac- 
tors and actresses whose native 
speech is not that of the Span- 
ish court have been denied em- 
ployment. 

“Assuming a ground of truth 
in these reports, we, the nation- 
als of the Spanish-speaking re- 
publics of North and South Amer- 
ica, desire to present these facts 
for the. information and consid- 
eration of the Hollywood pro- 
ducers of Spanish-speaking films. 

“1. Only .a portion of natives 
of the Spanish peninsula speak 
the so-called Castillian. There 
are several distinct languages in 
Spain in regions where Castillian 
is not the language of the people 
— notably Basque, Catalonian, Ga- 
licia, Asturias, and even in An- 
dalucia, Estremadura and other 
parts. 

“2. All Spanish-speaking re- 
publics of North and South Am- 
erica speak and write a gener- 
ally uniform language< Castil- 
liart in written form, with modi- 


BOB MURPHY OPENS A 
‘GOOD-EATS’ CHOP HOUSE 


Bob Murphy, first of the m. c.’s 
and a big name on the Keith- 
Orpheum time for years, is open 
ing a restaurant under the name 
of “Bob Murphy’s Chop House,” 
on Robertson Boulevard, midway 
between Culver City and Beverly 
Hills. Opening was Thursday of 
this week., with two sittings, the 
first from 5 :30 to 7 :30 p. m., and 
the other from 7 :30 on. 

Says Bob : “There will be no 
pigeon’s eyebrows, no filets of 
hummingbird’s tongues, just the 
good old substantiate headlined by 
that New England favorite of 
favorites, Ham and Cabbage.” 

Says Bob, furthermore: “To the 
professionals we promise you that 
good old personal service.” 


fications of idiom and pronuncia- 
tion. 

Other Points 

“3. The total population of 
Spain is 21,000,000. 

“4. The total population of the 
Spanish-speaking American re- 
publics is 60,000,000. 

“5. The chief market for Amer- 
ican-made films is in the Span- 
ish-American republics. 

“There are other points, not 
susceptible to munfericaj refer- 
ence, which should be consid- 
ered by producers who wish to 
turn out authentic and acceptable 
pictures for the Spanish-Ameri- 
can market. These include: The 
inevitable resentment of the Span- 
ish-American audiences at hear- 
ing in talking films nothing but 
what is to them a dialect from 
the Iberian peninsula; a dialect 
furthermore, which brings up po- 
litical and social differences of 
long standing and fruitful of acute 
controversy. 

“The producers of Spanish- 
speaking films, we urgently re- 
commend, should follow in all 
cases the same procedure which is 
followed in English-speaking talk- 
ies. No one uses actors addicted 
to Scotch burrs for pictures of 
Texas locale; nor the Oxford ac- 
cent to portray the speech of Al- 


MAJESTIC THEATRE 


The first week of “New Moon” 
at the Majestic, Louis O. Macloon 
and Lillian Albertson’s finest musi- 
cal production, broke all records 
for this house, topping $18,000. At 
no performance during the week 
was there any vacant seats, it was 
said. 

The Mason, with the Chauve- 
Souris in its second and last week, 
also d i d phenomenal business, 
reaching the $18,000 mark. This 
house* is now dark with nothing 
scheduled for the next several 
weeks The Biltmore, now show- 
ing a picture, will open in three 
weeks with George M. Cohan in 
“Gamblers.” 

At the Mayan, “Oh, Susanna” 
grossed $16,000 and is now in its 
final week. Next week, “Bam- 
bina,” a locally produced musi- 
cal show which clicked resound- 
ingly for three weeks in San 
Francisco, will be the attraction. 
It is featuring Nancy Welford, 
Al St. John and Marie Wells. 

The El Capitan has been go- 
ing strong with “The Boomerang” 
getting $5800 last week. It is 
now in its closing chapter. Next 
Sunday Mary Boland in “Ladies 
of the Jury” is the attraction. 

At the President, Henry Duffy 
and Dale Winter close with “The 
Cat and the Canary” next Sat- 
urday giving way to Kolb and 
Dill who open Sunday in “Give 
and Take.” The present show got 
$5800 last week. Fine takings for 
this house. 

The Hollywood Playhouse is 
still going very strong with “It 
Pays to Advertise” starring Robert 
McWade. They box-officed $5700 
last week and are in for an in- 
definite run. 

The Belasco is still playing 
“Journey’s End” to fair returns, 
Lucile La Verne opened at the 
Vine St. last Sunday and reports 
have it that she is drawing fine 
houses. Last Monday the Holly- 
wood Music Box opened with 
the Civic Repertory Theatre 
showing “And So To Bed.” 

FOX BUYS SAN BERDU 
THEATRE FROM McKEON 


Fox West Coast Theatres has 
purchased from the San Bernar- 
dino Theatre Holding Company, of 
which John McKeon is president, 
the Fox Theatre in San Berdu. 
The amount involved is said to 
approximate $600,000. 

Beside a theatre of 2000 seats 
capacity and considered the finest 
in the Orange Empire, the prop- 
erty contains seven stores and 
seventeen offices. 

Fox West Coast Theatres have 
been operating the theatre on a 
rental basis since its opening on 
Sept. 20. 

DENIES MARRIAGE STORY 


SAN FRANCISCO, Jan. 30— 
Eddie Barton, stage hand at the 
Casino, rises to deny a recent 
story in Inside Facts to the ef- 
fect that he was recently married 
to Fay Childs, show girl. Only 
an idle rumor without foundation 
or truth, says Barton. 


abama; nor the Irish brogue for 
pictures which depict life in Dor- 
setshire. This is elementary com- 
mon sense. 

Result In Disaster 

“No producer of intelligence, 
and no producer who wishes to 
avoid bankruptcy, would use Cas- 
tillian actors in a film portray- 
ing Mexican life and intended for 
Mexican consumption; nor would 
they use Chilean actors who could 
not assume the Castillian dialect 
for a picture depicting a story in 
Burgos and intended for Castil- 
lian consumption. 

“We feel, therefore, that any 
attempt to impose upon the talk- 
ing-pictures in Spanish any one 
dialect, idiom or language, would 
result in disaster, financial and 
artistic; cause irreparable mis- 
understandings between Ameri- 
can producers and Spanish-speak- 
ing audiences; work hardships on 
actors and actresses of both Span- 
ish and Ibero-American origins, 
and create a situation difficult of 
solution and perhaps impossible 
of reconciliation.” 


Directoral Deftness 


The finesse of directorial touches, which rose to a great 
height in the days of the silent pictures, is rapidly gaining 
ground in the talkies. During the past week three pictures were 
on view which had direction of superior merit in certain of 
their sequences. This is noteworthy, as just now are the talk- 
ies beginning to show that straightaway direction is inferior 
to deft handling of conversation angles, much as the silents 
were subject to deft handling of camera angles. The three pic- 
tures are “The Rogue Song,” “Anna Christie” and “The Love 
Parade.” 

Ernst Lubitsch, director of “The Love Parade,’” has brought 
a new technique to the talkies, and one which, until overdone, 
as it no doubt will be, is extremely engaging. It is used in the 
picture several times, but one instance will suffice to show its 
substance. 

The queen (Jeannette MacDonald )and a courtier (Maurice 
Chevalier )are supping together. Lubitsch was faced with the 
necessity of getting over a love interest, not too rapid in devel- 
opment and not too slow in footage. Showing the ordinary evo- 
lution of love would have been a tedious process, so the direc- 
tor introduced a sort of Greek chorus, compounded on the one 
part of cabinet ministers and on the other of two servants. 
Shots of them were played for comedy, keeping the picture 
bright, and yet at the same time their comments on what was 
happening in the queen’s chambers, switching the scene amid 
the three points of the choruses and the room itself, got over 
with extreme rapidity the gradually devfeloping love. And all 
with laughs. Most excellent talkie finesse. 

Lionel Barrymore, director of “The Rogue Song,” likewise 
pioneered with angles of sight and sound. In one scene the story 
called for Lawrence Tibbett to strangle the heavy, played by 
Ulrich Haupt. Such a scene in sight and sound threatened to 
be unpleasant. But Barrymore solved the difficulty by having 
at one side of the scene a window through which came the 
modified light of night. The rest of the scene, the major por- 
tion of it, was in darkness. Haupt is in the room, Tibbett en- 
ters, seizes him by the throat and they fall together into the 
darkness, where the slaying is done. Not at all horrible, as 
would have been the case had it been handled otherwise, ’and 
a marked tribute to Barrymore’s directorial shrewdness. 

No such striking example as either of these was in “Anna 
Christie,” but the picture had many touches which showed a 
marked subtlety and understanding of the possibilities of the 
new medium. 


RADIO PICTURES GET 
SET FOR BIG START 


George K. Spoor and P. J. Ber- 
tram, wide screen experts who re- 
cently brought the first Spoor 
equipment west for use at the Ra- 
dio Pictures’ studios, have left 
again for New York. The equip- 
ment is now being installed at the 
wide screen theatre recently built 
on the lot. 

The 'two experts will return for 
start of “Dixianna,” which will be 
Radio’s first big screen offering. 
This will probably start late in 
February, as Bebe Daniels, the 
star, has another picture to do 
first. 

Prospects are that it will be 
shot on the new mammoth stage 
now under construction at R-K-O. 
The first division of the stage is 
already completed. There will be 
four such divisions, all capable of 
handling companies for big screen 
shooting. 

SERENADE SICK GIRL 


As a compliment to Joan Ar- 
tell, musician and prima donna 
who is convalescing at the French 
Hospital from an appendix opera- 
tion, Pierre Carta, violinist, who 
was former head of music at 
Paramount and J. Marc, French 
cellist, both of whom are at pres- 
ent on the music staff of Fox 
Studios, brought their instruments 
to the hospital last Sunday eve- 
ning and entertained the patients 
with a concert, playing from Miss 
Artell’s room. The concert lasted 
half an hour, the program consist- 
ing of both classic and popular 
numbers. 

PREMIER PARTY 


Dedication ceremonies will mark 
the formal opening of Premier 
Pictures Corporation’s new studio 
on Glendale boulevard next week. 
Joe Rock, president, will hold a 
“house-warming” which will be 
attended by more than one hun- 
dred motion picture celebrities and 
executives, city officials, newspaper 
folk and others. 


KAYE IN FIFTH WEEK 


Eddie Kaye, formerly with the 
vaude act of Manning and Kaye, 
and who completed the Pan time 
just before the sale of the Pan- 
tages_ Theatres to Warner Broth- 
ers, is now in his fifth week as 
master - of - ceremonies at Coffee 
Dan’s here. 

WILL GO TO S. F. 


Bud Murray, who staged the 
dances and ensembles of “Oh 
Susanna,” operetta now at the 
Mayan Theatre, and Bakaleinikoff, 
its musical director, will go to San 
Francisco with the show for the 
opening. 



BE TOLD MEETING 


(Continued from Page 1) 
Robert Edeson, Lloyd Hughes, 
Richard Tucker and Rod La 
Rocque. 

On the subcommittee which met 
at the Roosevelt Monday night, 
and which is drafting the pre- 
liminary report for submission to 
Hollywood’s acting professionals 
are Irving Thalberg, Mike Levee, 
Lawrence Grant, Conrad Nagel, 
Sam Hardy, Jean Hersholt and 
Wallace Beery. 


BERT DE VORE DIES H 
STEELTON FROM CANCEI 

Bert DeVore, age 46, died Jar 
17 at Steelton, Pa., of cancer." De 
Vore will be remembered in th 
early days of the Mack Sennet 
lot, where he was a comic. H 
was injured in a fall and force* 
to retire as a motion picture actor 
He then joined Lew Worth in ; 
blackface act and teamed with hin 
for 10 years after which he wen 
on the road as field man for th 
Bert Levey vaudeville circuil 
In 1926 he bought the Rainbov 
Theatre in Great Falls, Mont., am 
the following year opened a vaude 
ville exchange in Sioux City 
Iowa, and in Omaha, Neb. 

During the early part of 192‘ 
he went on the road for the clul 
department of the R-K-O in Chi 
cago where he was taken ill h 
August and sent to a hospital, h 
the Actors’ Fund, for an operetioi 
from which he never fully recov 
ered. He is survived by a soj 
and two brothers. Interment wa 
fn Steelton, Pa. 


JUDELLS WITH “SUSANNA 

Charlie Judells has been signe 
as stage director for “Oh, Si 
sanna,” now playing at the Maya 
and soon to go to San Francisc* 
The play was directed for il 
opening and first two weeks b 
George Rosener, who recently n 
signed from the post to return t 
picture directing and writing, fc 
which he was brought west b 
M-G-M. 


LOOKING FOR DANCER 

The Earle Wallace Studios 
Stage Dancing has begun the 
lection of a unit of 16 girls to : 
pear in motion pictures at one 
Hollywood’s leading studios. / 
plicants will have to be five fe 
four inches high. No beginn* 
will be considered. Those who ; 
selected will be placed under frc 
one to three-year contracts. 



SATURDAY, FEB. 1, 1930 


INSIDE FACTS OF STAGE AND SCREEN 


PAGE THREE 


NEW LINDEN RADIO CHAIN SOON 



:D 


S| 


\% mmmik 






I 




Gene Gary, Dick Jewel and 
Eddie Pope 

With “Odds and Ends,” RKO This Week 

Those bookers who choose the talent for talking pictures would 
do well to interview and try out The Harmony Trio, whose picture 
appears above. They are a trio of unusual merit, each member 
possessing valuable stage experience, having played juvenile roles at 
various times in the East and on the Coast. Probably the most 
noted critic in the Northwest spoke of them in the highest regard, 
saying that this was undoubtedly the best harmony trio he had ever 
heard, playing a special compliment to their stage appearance as well 
as to their vocal ability. Each member is a soloist. 


U STARTS OH 12 



Universal has started produc- 
tion of 12 two-reel all-dialogue 
and sound pictures with foreign 
speaking casts. 

The pictures will be made in 
French, Italian, Spanish and Mex- 
ican, and will be short dramatic 
sketches and musical comedies fea- 
turing foreign stars. Paul Kohner 
is supervising the productions. 

A musical picture, with singing 
in Italian, will feature Renee De 
Loiguora, concert pianist. There 
will be three musical pictures in 
Spanish, in which Andre Segu- 
rola, opera singer, will be fea- 
tured. 

The picture in Mexican will- fea- 
ture Tirado, Mexican comedian; 
Lupita Tavor; Nancy Torres, 
singer and dancer, recently signed 
to a long-term contract by Uni- 
versal; Delia Megana, and Laura 
del Puente. 

As a feature, each of the for- 
eign language pictures will be in- 
troduced by a Universal star, 
speaking that particular language; 
Laura La Plante, John Boles, Jo- 
seph Schildkraut, Glenn Tryon, 
Mary Nolan, Hoot Gibson and 
Ken Maynard. 

All of the series will be filmed 
strictly in a foreign language and 
played by actors and actresses of 
that nationality. 

NOW PLAYING SOLID 


Solid time, with no layoffs, is 
now in effect in Southern Cali- 
fornia for Fanchon and Marco 
“Ideas.” The “Trees Idea,” which 
closed at Loew’s State Thursday, 
is the first to get a consecutive 
five weeks. The solid time was 
obtained by acts opening on 
Thursdays at San Diego and 
Long Beach, and by adding five 
days at the Fox West Coast The- 
atre in the latter city. Until the 
new arrangement was in effect, 
acts lost a day between Los An- 
geles and San Diego, where they 
opened on Friday, and five days 
after doing two ; in Long Beach, 
prior to going into Graurnan’s 
Egyptian, Hollywood. 


SOLOMON’S BALLROOM 
TO OPEN AS NITE CLUB 


Solomon’s Ballroom on Grand 
Avenue changes to a night club 
this week under the name of Solo- 
mon’s Jungle Room. 

The usual penny dance will no 
longer be in session, the new pol- 
icy including a floor show of six- 
teen girls, with Sonny Brooks’ 
Eleven Music Masters. There will 
be four hours of free dancing and 
a free buffet lunch served nightly 
with a thirty-five cent admission. 
Matinee admission will be 25 cents. 

Saturday nights will be ’49er 
nights, with forty-nine cents ad- 
mission. 

Solomon is redecorating the ball- 
room, following the general design 
of the Cocoanut Grove at the Am- 
bassador Hotel. 


BEN OPPOSITE BEBE 

Ben Lyon, Bebe Daniels’ 
fiancee, has been selected for the 
leading masculine role opposite 
her in “Smooth as Satin,” at Ra- 
dio Pictures’ Studio. It will be di- 
rected by George Archainbaud. 


Val Valente 
And Band Ace 
Drawing Group 


Acclaimed by San Franciscans 
as an ace band, Val Valente and 
his organization current^ are one 
of the biggest music hits in San 
Francisco. Valente, whose picture 
appears on the front page of this 
issue of Inside Facts, is at the fa- 
mous Roof Garden Cafe, an out- 
standing spot among the Bay city’s 
many night clubs. 

As a result of his excellent mu- 
sic and attractive personality, Val- 
ente’s Band is accredited as being 
one of the best draws in night 
club circles. 

In addition to its popularity at 
the Roof Garden itself the band 
is a big favorite over KFRC, Val’s 
greeting of “This is Val Valente’s 
music” being known from San Di- 
ego to Vancouver. 

Valente expects, to. announce a 
recording contract with one of the 
major companies in the near, fu- 
ture. 


SEATTLE PLIED 


SAN FRANCISCO, Jan. 29.— 
Rumors recently printed in In- 
side Facts that Adolph Linden, 
former head of the now defunct 
American Broadcasting Co., was 
about to make a re-entry into the 
radio field were apparently near 
confirmation this week. Seeming- 
ly authentic reports from people 
“on the inside” claim that Linden 
has promoted sufficient capital in 
the East to pay off the majority 
of claims against A.B.C. and will 
again start his ether activities. 

Linden is expected in Seattle 
this week where he will begin 
preparations for a chain of sta- 
tions made up of KJR, Seattle; 
KGA, Spokane; KEX, Portland; 
KYA, San Francisco; KGER, 
Long Beach; a new station at 
Agua Caliente to which call letters 
have not yet been assigned and 
one other in Los Angeles. Ac- 
cording to the reports the plans 
are to tie KGER in Long Beach 
in with the Los Angeles station 
to allow the. new network two 
broadcasting channels. 

Telephone companies handling 
transcontinental programs for the 
A.B.C. have been paid approxi- 
mately ,$90,000, the amount due 
them for past services. With this 
and other obligations wiped off 
Linden bids fair to make a bril- 
liant re-entry into the field, but 
probably on a much more modi- 
fied scale than when he offered 
such high-grade programs over 
A.B.C. and ran into debts over his 
head. 




E 1 TALKIE 


Aimee Semple McPherson is go- 
ing to enter pictures, hallelujah! 

The Angelus Pictures, Ltd., is 
the name of the new company un- 
der which the making of talkies 
by the blondined actress-preacher 
will operate. J. Roy Stewart and 
Victor Emden are to be connected 
with the project. 

The first feature will be a super- 
super, so the Angelus people say, 
called “Clay in the Potter’s 
Hands, ’’ and is to be a story of 
Aimee’s life “with variations,” from 
a scenario and dialogue being pre- 
pared by Harvey Gates. The parts 
of Steve and Rose have not, it is 
understood, been cast. Nor is it 
mentioned whether a part will be 
written in for Ormiston, nor 
whether the high-light wdll be a 
desert swim. 

The feature will not be made 
immediately, however. Last week 
Aimee appeared at Tec-Art studio 
and made some film and voice 
tests. She appeared in her well 
known white robe with its silver 
cross. She went through a series 
of gestures and spilled plenty of 
dialogue, and did it well, so it is 
said. 

It is further said that Aimee’s 
daughter, Roberta, will have a 
prominent part in the cast. ' 

Before making the feature, how- 
ever, Aimee stated that she would 
make a couple of short sermon- 
ettes which would be presented in 
her temple for an audience reac- 
tion some time when she was not 
present. If they go over, they will 
be used in the Temple while 
Aimee goes to Palestine. 

STEPIN WITH GANG 


Stepin Fetchit, colored; com- 
edian, singer and dancer, whose 
contract with Fox expired about 
two months ago by failure to re- 
new the option, has been signed 
for ,a featured part with the Hal 
Roach Gang. Stepin Fetchit was 
to do a part in a Columbia picture, 
but this was called off. It is 
understood billing of the Roach 
picture is to read “Our Gang 
With Stepin Fetchit.” 

W. C. BUYS HOUSE 


Fox West Coast Theatres have 
purchased the Hippodrome Thea- 
tre, Joplin, Mo. The Hippodrome 
is the largest theatre in Joplin, a 
city of 30,000. The house has a 
seating capacity of 1500 seats! 



Kathryn Irwin 

With “Odds and Ends,” RKO Ihis Week 

Miss Irwin is a coloratura soprano with quality based on unlimited 
training in the best art schools, coupled with experience gained on 
the operate stage in such roles as Inez in “II Travatore,” with the 
Boston Opera Company, and with the valuable experience which 
Frank Cambria gave her in his “Undersea” ballet which toured the 
Publix circuit. No wonder, then, she is acclaimed by the critics 
everywhere. Her popularity increases by leaps and bounds from sea- 
son to season, and talking motion pictures should take advantage of 
the opportunity to record her voice while she is in California on her 
present trip. 


WARNER BROTHERS BUY 
OF W. C. AGAIN RUMORED 


A story printed exclusively in 
Inside Facts in the issue of Jan- 
uary 11 in which it was stated 
that Warner Brothers were seek- 
ing to purchase the West .Coast 
Theatres chain from William Fox 
was again to the fore this week 
when it was revealed in the re- 
ceiver’s suit in New York by Fox’s 
attorney, Samuel Untermeyer, 
pleading for an extention of time 
before Judge Frank J. Coleman, 
that Fox had a plan for reorgan- 
izing his corporation and raising 
enough money to satisfy his cred- 
itors. 

According to Mrs. Susan Dryden 
Kuser’s attorneys, who filed the 
action against the film magnate, 
it was stated that negotiations 
were under way to dispose of the 
West Coast Theatre properties for 
a sum said to be $20,000,000. 


Saw ‘Bat/ He 
Is Now Full 
Fledged Critic 


SAN FRANCISCO, Jan. 30.— 
Show people are getting a chuckle 
still out of an incident of the trial 
here of the “Bad Babies” cast, a 
trial wffiich resulted in an acquittal 
by a jury in seven minutes — but 
further raids by the police. 

A doughty police officer was on 
the stand, so they’re telling it, 
and the defense attorney asked 
him if he thought himself a com- 
petent judge of the drama. 

“Sure,” was the answer. 

“Did you see ‘The Strange In- 
terlude’?” he was asked. 

“No.” 

“‘The Command to Love’?” 

“No.” 

“‘Lulu Belle’?” 

“No.” 

“‘The Road to Rome’?” 

“No.” - 

“Well, what have you seen?” 

“‘The Bat.’ I went to that ’un 
’cause it had a detective angle, 
see.” 


EXECS OF PATHE 



E 


Pathe has brought its shorts 
department executives from the 
New York offices to Hollywood, 
but the transplanted department 
has not yet been straightened 
around to definite form. 

The transfer was in plans prior 
to the recent fire at the Pathe 
shooting headquarters in the East, 
but the disaster hurried the move. 

William Woolfenden, who was 
casting director in the New York 
office, has charge of the depart- 
ment at Pathe now, with Arch 
Heath, formerly in charge of shorts 
for Universal, also here. 

The first of a series of two- 
reel music and comedy westerns 
which Pathe is to make has al- 
ready been started, but no start- 
ing date has as yet been set for 
the second of the shorts. When 
the program gets into full swing, 
plans are to make 52 a year at 
the rate of one a week. 

Various writers are now work- 
ing on the forthcoming pictures. 




E 

PUBLIX PERSONNEL 


Jerome Zigmund, former assis- 
tant manager at the Publix United 
Artists Theatre here, was trans- 
ferred this week to the Publix 
Avalon Theatre at Grand Junc- 
tion, Colorado. 

Clayton Long, former treasurer 
at the Paramount, replacing Usher. 

PERFECTING TRANSFER 

The Producers and Technicians 
Committee of the Academy of Mo- 
tion Picture Arts and Sciences are 
to meet Thursday night to per- 
fect plans for the taking over of 
the Technical Bureau heretofore 
run by the Association of Mo- 
tion Picture Producers and Dis- 
tributors. The Bureau is being 
transferred to Academy manage- 
ment. 



PAGE FOUR 


INSIDE FACTS OF STACF Awn sruirw 


SATURDAY, FEB. 1, 1930 



Picture “Reviews ^ Previews ** Shorts 


By A. H. FREDERICK 


‘THE LOVE PARADE’ 

Paramount picture 
(Reviewed at Paramount) 

Borrowing the words of Abra- 
ham Lincoln, those who like this 
kind of a show will find it just 
the kind of a show they like. It 
is an operetta, strongly reminis- 
cent in everything but plot of 
"The Chocolate Soldier,” and laid 
in a Graustarkian kingdom. The 
Maurice Chevalier personality, 
some of the tunes and one sol- 
dier ensemble are the outstanding 
elements, the story interest being 
nothing but a skeleton upon which 
to hang the Frenchman’s audience 
appeal and a lot of well done 
laughs, some of which are very 
broad. 

In the field of screen musical 
operettas it takes good rank, and, 
as before indicated, where such 
have a drawing power it should 
fare nicely. The story is a much 
less considerable matter than was 
that of “Innocents of Paris” and 
the punch of some of Chevalier’s 
songs, in that picture outshines 
anything musical here, despite that 
there are some good tunes. 

The picture serves to introduce 
Jeannette MacDonald, who brings 
from the stage a highly pleasing 
personality and an ability to act 
which meets all demands of her 
role here, and an excellent and 
clear-miking singing voice. 

The story opens with Chevalier, 
an attache at Paris for the court 
of the mythical Sylvania, ordered 
home for explanation of some of 
his amours. Ushered into the 
presence of the queen, he brings 
his personality into play, and when 
she reads the charges against him 
she is intrigued to an extent where 
she invites him to dinner that 
night. This is a matter of great 
interest to her cabinet, which long 
has urged her to marry but with- 
out success. 

The attache so impresses her 
majesty that he becomes her 
prince consort, the wedding cere- 
mony showing a reversal of the 
usual situation in that the queen 
is enjoined to protect and cher- 
ish. whereas the bridegroom must 
promise to be docile. This scene 
is very funny. 

After the marriage the prince 
consort finds himself a nothing, 
she, from her position being the 
man of the family, and he having 
naught to do but eat and pass the 
time in idleness. How he changes 
the situation furnishes the balance 
of the plot. 

Ernst Lubitsch, the director, 
has brought a subtle touc hto the 
direction of the picture, and ex- 
pands the situations gracefully, 
easily and for full value. There 
are lots of laughs, cropping up 
unexpectedly as well as expected- 
ly, and, all in all, the direction is 
as. well done as has yet been con- 
tributed in the operetta division 
of the talkies. 

EXHIBITORS’ VIEWPOINT: 
Chevalier’s draw and the neat 
manner in which this picture has 
been filmed are sufficient, one or 
the other or both, to bring in good 
boxoffice to houses where one or 
the other or both are factors. 

PRODUCERS’ VIEWPOINT: 
Ernst Lubitsch proves himself a 
most able master of operetta di- 
rection, and the good points of the 
film are in no small degree to be 
accredited to him. 

Victor Schertzinger wrote the 
music, and among them has a 
number of extremely catchy tunes. 
'‘Dream Lover” is outstanding,, 
with “Let’s Be Common,” another' 
which should find wide use and 
popularity. Others, all of them 
good, are , “My Love Parade,” 
“Paris,” “Anything to Please the 
Queen” and “Nobody’s Using It 
Now.” Clifford Gray did the 
(Continued on Page IS) 


‘ANNA CHRISTIE’ 

M-G-M picture 
(Reviewed at Criterion) 

Greta Garbo makes her talking 
debut in this O’Neill story with 
the same vibrant, vivid emotional 
power she has shown in the sil- 
ents. Her voice is of an alluring 
musical quality which throbs easily 
and naturally in the more stress- 
ful sequences and which never 
fails to be of a most pleasing and 
impressing timbre. It goes through 
a wide range of tones, occasion- 
ally hitting very low notes, but 
far from unpleasantly. Her por- 
VayM of the Anna Christie role is 
distinctly a triumph. It is easily 
one of the best things yet done in 
the talkies, more nearly like the 
tense artistry of Jeanne Eagels 
than any other actress has 
achieved to date. While some of 
her adherents may feel a penetra- 
tion of the Garbo silent mysticism 
a bad thing, doubtlessly she will 
win a reception from the others 
and from new fans which will far 
offset this. In this reviewer’s pre- 
diction as to the future, Miss Gar- 
bo will be rated among the great 
emotional actresses of all time. 
Certainly, her portrayal here will 
rate a high place among the ten 
best performances of 1930. 

As in all things Miss Garbo fol- 
lows no beaten trend. There is 
not readily brought to mind an- 
other actress who could have han- 
dled this role with so much re- 
straint, so much sincerty in avoid- 
ing pyrotechnics and yet so im- 
pressively. 

Her accent — of course the role 
is. with a Swedish accent in the 
O’Neill play — is not so noticeable 
as those of most of Hollywood’s 
foreign colony, Baclanova, et al. 
Her words are readily followable. 

The most “movie” thing in the 
picture is the work of Marie 
Dressier, playing the role of the 
frowzy old prostitute. And be- 
cause it is the most “movie” thing, 
many of the measure-by-standard 
fans will consider that she comes 
near stealing the picture. As a 
matter of fact she does some tre- 
mendously able work, but she mars 
this by an insistence upon getting 
in some of the Dressier hoke at 
points where the best total re- 
sults call for quite a different 
treatment, lacking sincerity very 
badly at these times. But the 
“movie fans,” who, so the general 
opinion goes, are not educated up 
to straight O’Neill, will get their 
guffaws from the Dressier antics, 
both the consistent and the incon- 
sistent ones, and consequently Di- 
rector Clarence Brown did well in 
letting them stay in. 

I he O’Neill play is followed 
with faithfulness, with the addition 
of the sea vistas and exteriors 
which the screen permits. In this 
it betters the play, bringing more 
clarity to the environment which 
changes the girl and which has so 
affected the life of the old Swed- 
ish seaman. 

“Anna Christie” is laid in drab 
surroundings and has much drab 
about it as compared to the pic- 
tures which are usually fed out 
from Hollywood, and as a result 
the biggest applause for it is to 
be expected from those who wel- 
come something more than an- 
other version of “Burlesque” or 
another standardized treatment of 
the college boy, the whoopee girl 
or the domestic tangle themes. 
The discerning will rate it very 
high; the undiscerning, allured 
thereto by the education the polly- 
anna movies have given them, will 
express an opinion with reserve or 
else will remember the picture for 
the belly-laughs they got out of 
the Dressier characterization. 

EXHIBITORS’ VIEWPOINT: 

In any house which draws them 
in for artistically done pictures, 



Eileen Mercedes 

Favorite 

Stage and Screen Beauty 

New York Morning Telegraph 
says: 

“Miss Mercedes, tall blonde, un- 
usually beautiful, was made to or- 
der for pictures. Sings well and 
dances charmingly. There are not 
too many girls available who can 
do all the things she does and do 
them well.” 

Management 
JIMMIE BURNS 


EARLE WALLACE 

Always Busy Developing Dancing Stars but Never Too Busy 
to Create and Produce 

Original DANCE ROUTINES and REVUES That Sell 
Belmont Theatre Bldg., First and Vermont 
Phone Exposition 1196 Los Angeles, Calif. 



BU& MURRAY 


» ASSOCIATES- 
3636 BEVERLY BLVD. — Los Angeles — Tel. DU. 6721 

PRACTICAL STAGE TRAINING 
STAGE TAP DANCING fin All Its Branches) 
BALLE T Technique > By SIGNOR G. V. ROS1 


this is a winner. And it is the 
same where the Garbo draw is 
in effect. In such places it may 
be looked to as a record-breaker, 
or thereabouts. In other spots 
than these the wise exhib will 
look this one over before booking. 
It’s anything but typical musical 
yardage. 

PRODUCERS’ VIEWPOINT: 
Clarence Brown has turned out an 
artistic triumph here, and the pic- 
ture moves along full of the sym- 
pathetic treatment he put into it. 
The only movieized touch is the 
Dressier over-play, and this is, 
from a boxoffice standpoint, a 
neatly done sop for the less dis- 
criminating patrons. Brown did 
well in sticking close to the 
O’Neill play, and this, with his 
able directorial touches and the 
Garbo characterization, hold inter- 
est up to a splendid point through- 
out. 

The adaptation was by Frances 
Marion, and was discerning in 
keeping the salient points to the 
fore with atmosphere effective but 
sufficiently short not to interrupt 
story flow. 

CASTING DIRECTORS’ 
VIEWPOINT: As above re- 

marked, Greta Garbo is . to be 
rated in all reckonings as to film- 
dom’s premier talking actress. 

Charles Bickford, of “Dyna- 
mite” and “Untamed,” does his 
best work to date in the role op- 
posite her, putting full life into 
the blatant and child-minded Irish- 
man of the play. It is difficult to 
imagine this role better cast from 
among Hollywood’s roster. 

George Marion plays his stage 
role of the Swedish father of 
Anna, and does it for full effec- 
tiveness, making the most of each 
and every chance. A very good 
portrayal. 

Marie Dressier, as before re- 
marked, could, with somewhat 
more sincerity, have made a clas- 
sic out of the prostitute role, a 
fact which is evidenced by the 
many fine sequences she turns in. 
But putting her trade-mark into 
the picture whenever the chance 
offered made the part more Dress- 
ier and less O’Neill, which was 
not any improvement except for 
the guffaw brigade. 

lee Phelps does a smooth bar- 
tender. 


SEITZ TO DIRECT 


George B. Seitz has been signed 
to direct “Hawk Island,” the New 
York stage play, for Radio Pic- 
tures. William LeBaron bought 
the screen rights to show on his 
last trip back to New York. Bert- 
ram Milhauser will supervise. Beu- 
lah Marie Dix has been assigned 
to do the adaptation. The play, 
which is a society murder mys- 
tery, is understood to have been 
bought originally for Richard Dix, 
but it is not thought likely he will 
do it. 


DANCE HALL’ 

Radio Pictures picture 
(Reviewed at RKO Theatre) 

Take the sex out pf a Vina 
Delmar story and what is left is 
not much. And what was left in 
Delrriar’s “Dance Hall” when the 
Radio Pictures studios made the 
necessary courtesies to the censors 
was badly marred by very poor 
casting of the two principal parts. 
Arthur Lake has the male assign- 
ment and Olive Borden the fern, 
and between them they failed to 
hold any interest whatsoever in 
their long sequences together. 
Lake was up to his old trick of 
sacrificing naturalness to his desire 
to scintillate exuberantly (which 
he also failed to do), and Miss 
Borden was far from convincing 
as a dance hall jitney dancer. 
Nor did a blond wig help her any 
either in looks or in character. 

There was in this picture a 
marvelous opportunity for some 
one of Hollywood’s juveniles who 
would enter the part with sincerity 
and a sympathetic understanding. 
1 here were some unusual sym- 
pathy scenes, and some touching 
ones in the script. But by the 
time Arthur Lake did his burlesque 
walk, his overdone self-conscious 
awkwardness, and his parroty head 
slants all sympathy had fled. De- 
spite that the heavy (played by 
Ralph Emerson) was pictured as a 
villain of standardized depravity, 
what sympathy there was in the 
picture apart from a major share 
gleaned by Margaret Seddon was 
divided between him and Miss 
Borden. This is the second time 
within a short period that this 
reviewer has seen Arthur Lake in 
the final love fadeout, and it just 
doesn t click, he having too ir- 
radicably stamped himself as a 
clown to warrant h i m being 
placed in any romantic situation 
whatsoever. 

But there were bright moments 
m the picture, contributed by that 
estimable Joseph Cawthorn, who 
ea'sily stole the film; and there was 
the neatly-done mother role by 
Miss Seddon. And also Melville 
Brown directed the picture for a 
maximum considering the script 
and the cast he had to work with. 

The story relates how Lake is 
a dance hall fan, being drawn 
there by his love for dancing and 
for Miss Borden. Between them 
they dream of becoming profes- 
sional dancers, having won prizes 
in contests to bolster their assur- 
ance. 

But there comes a heavy, a flier 
who makes love to the girl. This 
flier gets a chance to try a non- 
stop flight across the country, and 
upon the eve of his departure, 
Lake discovers that the girl’s love 
is for the airman. 

The flier flies and crashes, and 
Miss Borden faints. Lake takes 
her to his home for his mother’s 
care during her convalescence. 

Then the flier returns and goes 
to housekeeping with another girl, 
without the formality of marriage. 
Lake discovers this and his at- 
tempt to keep the knowledge from 
Miss Borden causes her to accuse 
him of treachery. So Lake goes 
to bring the man 'to the girl by 
force, _ and gets vastly pommeled 
tor his pains. Then the girl dis- 
covers it is Lake whom she has 
always loved, the dance hall pro- 
prietor gives them a professional 
dancing contract and that’s it 
EXHIBITORS’ VIEWPOINT: 
Lukewarm but adequate for a pro- 
grammer. 

PRODUCERS’ VIEWPOINT: 
Melville Brown’s direction is bet- 
ter than the total of the product 
turned out. He did much to over- 
come the handicaps under which 
he labored, and, with better leads 
(Continued on Page 15) 


THE ROGUE SONG’ 

M-G-M picture 
(Reviewed at Chinese) 

Lawrence Tibbett brings to the 
talking screen a singing voice 
which without question is the 
most splendid yet heard in this 
new medium. He fills the house 
with an inspiring baritone which 
rings with a clarity and fullness 
that thrill to a point where the 
audience, shadow only though the 
singer be, cannot help but ap- 
plaud. It’s that kind of singing. 

.1 ibbett tops the male singers 
to date in this respect. And 
there is another in which he also 
bids for top honors, and that is as 
an actor-singer. He goes into the 
requirements of his role with a 
full fire of sincerity and never is 
he so content to rest upon his 
laurels as a singer that he tosses 
off the histrionic demands care- 
lessly. Whether he will be an- 
other great lover of the screen re- 
mains to be seen, but certainly it 
would be a tremendous surprise 
if he fails to become very big 
boxoffice. 

The picture is distinctly a new 
type of screen entertainment. The 
numbers are never of the “popu- 
lar” variety, coming closer, as de- 
livered, to opera than to musical 
comedy. The story lays claim 
to being one which would be ade- 
quate without the music, and its 
director, Lionel Barrymore, has 
given a full meed of consideration 
to seeing that it moves along with 
due speed and interestingly. 

1 ibbett is the whole picture, his 
acting over-topping by far any- 
thing turned in by the rest of the 
cast, and his voice topping any- 
thing yet done in the talkies. 

The story is laid in Russia, with 
Tibbett a leader of a band of 
Russian Robin Hoods. In his pil- 
fering meanderings he meets a 
princess (Catherine Dale Owen), 
who is vastly fascinated by the 
rogue. So much is she intrigued 
that she warns him of an impend- 
ing danger when the Cossacks 
close in on him, and thus insures 
his escape. 

Returning to his home the 
rogue discovers that his sister has 
been betrayed by Prince Serge, 
and,, his sister having committed 
suicide, he sets out to kill the 
noble. He trails him to a big 
reception and there discovers that 
the Prince is the brother of the 
Princess whom he has now learned 
to love. Nevertheless he carries 
through his revenge, strangling 
the Prince and being discovered 
after the deed by the Princess. 
She expresses amazement that he 
a commoner, should have dared 
kill a noble for any reason what- 
soever. The rogue, angered by 
this insult to his dead sister, kid- 
naps the girl and carries her to- 
ward a mountain fastness, making 
her wait upon him in all menial 
chores. 

. Comes a storm, and with it a 
night of love. But meantime the 
Princess is plotting to betray him 
to _ the Cossacks, and succeeds in 
doing so. With her consent, he is 
taken to a castle and severely 
flogged, but up to the moment 
when he faints under the pain he ' 
keeps singing his songs, ad- 
dressed to the Princess. At last 
she can stand it no longer and 
makes them carry the unconscious 
man to her boudoir, where he 
awakens in her arms. 

.Then comes the ending, with 
im riding away with the words 
that some day the fictitious bar- 
riers of rank which separate them 
may be swept aside and he will 
return. As the story opens in 
tyiU one may happily conjecture 
it one cares to, that the bolsheviks 
brought this to pass. 


19 SEASON PRICES 

SO0 n CAST 1 T P **„ „ W so e 7s c f,oo 

** K.». I*1ac Lean as frayjuniperoserra M 

ev&YAFTaiixm-excepTMomAv&s- wea/MosAj*evt tt‘ 5 

MARCAL 

Hollywood Blvd. at Gower 
HO. 8069 

MARQUIS 

Melrose at Doheny Dr. 
OX. 2208 

SUN., MON., TUES., WED., 
February 2-3-4 6’ 

“LITTLE JOHNNY JONES” 
With EDDIE BUZZELL 

THURS., FRI., SAT., FEB. 6-7-8 
PAULINE FREDERICK in 
“EVIDENCE” 

SUN., MON., FEE 2-3 
JOAN CRAWFORD in 
“THE UNTAMED” 

4 DAYS STARTING FEB 4 
JOHN BARRYMORE in 
“GENERAL CRACK” 

SAT. ONLY, FEB 6 
ERNEST TORRENCE in 
“THE UNHOLY NIGHT" 
and 

l- 6 ACTS OF RKO VAUDEVILLE 


SATURDAY, FEB. 1, 1930 


INSIDE FACTS OF STAGE AND SCREEN 


PAGE FIVE 


3 PICTURE HOUSE RECORDS FALL 


“I DO NOT WANT A CENT” 


The way of justice is a straight road which any man’s eye may follow, but the 
intricacies of legal twists and turns is another matter, and one which to the layman 
is onerously confusing. 

A case in point has been reviyed during the past week as one big topic of conver- 
sation in Los Angeles and Hollywood. Of course we refer to the case of the State of 
California vs. Alexander Pantages, a case which, filed upon the complaint of Aileen 
Pringle, resulted in a long penitentiary sentence for the multi-millionaire showman. 

Public memory is short, but it should not be so short as to forget that the turning 
point, apparently, came when Miss Pringle announced through the public prints that: 

"1 do not want a cent for myself; all I want is to see him punished for what he did to me.” 

This writer and various other members of the staff of Inside Facts talked to 
many people about the Pantages case at the time Miss Pringle made her sensational 
charges. On the first flash of the news the case stood: 

Miss Pringle charged she had been wantonly and inexcusably attacked by 

Alexander Pantages ; 

Mr. Pantages counter-charged that the whole thing was a frame-up. 

The public’s opinion, insofar as Inside Facts could ascertain, hovered in the balance 
between believing the one or the other story. Pantages had just culminated a lifetime 
of endeavor and business acumen by disposing of the bulk of his vaudeville houses 
for an amount reported to be up in the many millions of dollars. Certainly a fair tar- 
get for anyone who was seeking his or her financial advancement and was not overly 
scrupulous about how it was done. Stories circulated, true or otherwise, of strange 
coincidences which could not have been better set to entrap the theatrical magnate. 

Public opinion hung in the balance, and not even the most zealously inclined law- 
yer, dry-as-dust in the search for precedents and legal sanctimony, but will admit that 
the public opinion, in cases played large in the press, has quite a bit to do with the 
outcome of certain cases. 

Then came Miss Pringle’s statement : 

"l do not want a cent for myself; all I ivant is to see him punished for what he did to me.” 

That statement swung the balance of public opinion. Certainly, it was reasoned, 

charges of a frame-up fall of their own weight if the person charged so to be inclined 
refuses absolutely to consider any personal financial gain through the happening. And, 
with the case standing thus, Alexander Pantages was tried and convicted. 

Now, we suppose, “new evidence,” like everything else in law, is given a technical 
and precedental interpretation. But reckoning only in the realms of justice and not in 
those of law, it seems vastly unfair that, with this big fact — perhaps the deciding fact 
—changed, Pantages should not have a new trial. Without doubting Miss Pringle’s 
statement that she has been persuaded to the action to sue for an amount for which 
many men would risk their lives many times over, and an amount. which has been an 
alchemy in which to dissolve human nature for generatipns, still the fact remains that 
this girl who “didn’t want a cent” for. herself is now asking $1,000,000, and also that 

a friend of hers is suing Pantages for another $500,000. 

Now there were certain things in the beginning against Pantages, and those things 
remain .though not of legal admissibility as weighing factors. For generations there 
has been a feeling among lay people which easily fires into wrath against show peo- 
ple. And, again, Pantages As a multi-millionaire, albeit not of Los Angeles select group 
of millionaires and multi-millionaires. But even with these facts against him, Inside 
Facts doubts if there is a jury obtainable in the County of Los Angeles or in the State 
of California which would find him guilty if the defense, upon a reopened case, were 
allowed to ask : 

“Miss Pringle, you said at one time that you did not want a cent for yourself, did 
you not?” 

“Yes.” 

“You said so many times, did you not?” 

“Yes.” 

“And now you are suing him for $1,000,000, are you not?' 

“Yes.” 

Legally this fact may be incompetent, irrelevant and immaterial, we do not know. 
But in the realms of justice it is certainly most pertinent, and in our opinion, and also 
in the opinions of all to whom we have talked, certainly it not only justifies but actu- 
ally calls upon the district attorney’s office to permit it to take its rightful place in 
the panorama of the Pantages case. The verdict might be the same, of this we again 
do not know, but we do know that there was a mighty weight added by that “I do 
not want a cent for myself,” and a conviction secured when this weight was pressing 
down will always leave a mighty question in the minds of Californians as to whether 
or not a most grave injustice was done when the weighty fact was so soon to be 
diametrically reversed with a declaration, “I want $1,000,000 for myself.” 


KMf REVUE OF 35 
PEOPLE REHEARS1G 
FOR L ft. OPEN! 


Roger Grey, late of the “Oh, 
Susanna” cast, is co-producing a 
revue for a Los Angeles or Hol- 
lywood opening. Date is tenta- 
tively set for about three weeks 
but the house has not yet been 
selected. 

Cast, which is now rehearsing 
at the Knights of Columbus hall 
in Hollywood, includes Charles 
McNaughton, who divided, top 
honors with Beryl Mercer in U. 
A.’s “Three Live Ghosts,” Pert 
Kelton, the Aber Twins and Roger 
Grey, the latter also being stage 
director. A report was that nego- 
tiations were under way to have 
Leatrice Joy also in the cast, but 
whether this had or had not come 
to any definite result was not 
stated. 

Total of people in the show 
will be between 30 and 35. 

Walter Wills of the Wills-Cun- 
ningham School of Dancing, is 
to furnish the chorus ensemble, 
which will be between 12 and 14 
dancing girls, no boys. 

New Reason 
For Duck-Out 
On Egan Show 

Some funny reasons are given 
for various crimes of commission 
or omission in show business but 
the hottest alibi for ducking out 
on a production was presented to 
Tom Kress, manager of the Egan 
I heatre, by William Thornton 
who had engaged the theatre . to 
make a , production of the Irish 
comedy “Playboy of the Western 
World.” 

The cast had been tentatively 
engaged and rehearsals were 
scheduled when Thornton got 
cold feet and in order to bolster 
his courage submitted the man- 
uscript of the play, which is now 
having a vogue in New York, to 
some Catholic priests to ascer- 
tain if there w;as anything ob- 
jectionable therein to the adher- 
ents of that faith. The priest, 
after a careful perusal assured 
Thornton that he saw no rea- 
son why the play should not be 
presented. 

Thornton then sought the ad- 
vice of one Frane Williams, said 
to be a producer of semi-pro and 
amateur plays in the small towns. 
Frane advised him not to do the 
piece because — and here it. comes: 
— “Irish people would object to 
seeing an Irish play performed 
by American actors.” 

When Thornton reneged on his 
agreement with Kress, Tom ob- 
served: “I never thought of that 

one before. Perhaps that’s the 
reason the Engilsh objected so 
strenuously to American actors 
playing Shakespeare.’’ 

IN TIFFANY PICTURE 


Pauline Garon ha,s been signed 
for a role in “Sunny Skies” at 
Tiffany. 


REYNOLDS BACK 


Harrington Reynolds is back in 
Plollywood from a trip which in- 
cluded India in its itinerary. 


NEW HAINES TITLE 

William Haines' M-G-M pic- 
ture shot under the title of “Fresh 
From College” will be released as 
“The Girl Said No.” 


TO GO IN “IDEA” 


Born and Lawrence are to go 
into Fanchon and Marco’s "Idea 
In Green.” 


Dress Your Theatre or Your Act With 
The Finest and Most Artistic 


Drop Curtain* 
Picture Screen* 
Presentations 
Cydoramas 
Unusual 
Fabric* 



New and 
Unique 

Scenic Effects 
For Stages 
and 

Vaudeville 

Acte 


DESIGNED - RENTED - PRODUCED 

By the Largest and Best Staff of Scenic Artists 
In America’s Most Beautiful Studio 

LOS ANGELES SCENIC STUDIOS, Inc. 

1215 Bates Ave.. at Fountain. Near Sunset Hollywood, California Phono OL. 2914 


LAWRENCE TIBBETT, 
GRETA GARBO 10 

mm oo TRICK 


Three picture house records 
went down to defeat last week 
and this. 

Lawrence Tibbett, singing hero 
of M-G-M’s “The Rogue Song" 
drew in $37,243 to the Chinese 
with the first week of “the pic- 
ture which will make motion pic- 
ture history.” A record. 

Greta Garbo’s first talkie, 
“Anna Christie” opened to sensa- 
tional business at the Criterion, 
the first two days being the big- 
gest in the history of the house 
and more big ones following for 
a week’s house record. It looked 
like a $36,000 to $40,000 week. 

Will Rogers' Fox picture, “They 
Had to See Paris” was- the third 
in the trio of record breakers, 
taking a $13,060 gross for the 
Boulevard, where the customary 
intake is around $6500 to $7500. 
The Parisian Revue was in sup- 
port. 

All of these were Fox houses, 
but Paramount also had cause for 
rejoicing in the second Maurice 
Chevalier picture, “The Love Pa- 
rade.” This picture packed ’em 
in to. the tune of $41,000, which 
is within a couple of thousand 
of the house record, the personal 
appearance week of A1 Jolson be- 
ing excepted. This picture will 
be held over for three weeks. 

Warners Drop 

“Show of Shows” took a big 
drop at the Warner Brothers' 
Downtown Theatre, doing $21,200 
in its third week, after a good 
second week of $31,700. 

Second week of Marilyn Mil- 
ler in “Sally” at the Warner Bro- 
thers’ Hollywood house was also 
down at $23,700, following an 
opening week of $31,100. 

Following up a good $11,239 
week of Gloria Swanson’s U. A. 
picture, “Th,e Treispalsser,” the 
Egyptian Theatre in Hollywood 
topped it on the following stanza 
by having George Bancroft’s Par- 
amount picture, “The Mighty” to 
a boxoffice tune of $12,800. This 
is the two best consecutive weeks 
this house has had for some time. 

“Rio Rita” Radio Pictures, did 
a good tenth week at the Carthay 
Circle, taking $9453, a pickup of 
about a thousand over the pre- 
vious week. Announcement of 
closing date caused the spurt. 
“Devil May Care” opened Wed 
nesday. 

Other Figures 

“Hot For Paris” Fox, finished 
its run to the moderate boxoffice 
of $5910 at the Criterion, being 
followed by the Garbo taikie. 

Lenore Ulric in the Fox picture 
“South Sea Rose” dropped some- 
what under the William Haines 
M-G-M picture of the previous 
period. Gross for “South Sea 
Rose’’ was $30,871. It was sup- 
ported by the Fanchon and Marco 
“Peasant Idea.” 

Norma Talmadge’s first talkie, 
“New York Nights” did only the 
fair opening week’s figure of $23,- 
200 at the United Artists The- 
atre, compared to pictures which 
have recently played there. It 
gives way Saturday to “The 
Locked Door,” which is booked 
in for one week only. 

“Hit the Deck,” Radio Pictures 
offering, held up to the neat in- 
take of $12,500 in its fifth week. 

The other RRO house, the 
RKO Theatre, went down to the 
very poor figure of $15,500 with 
RKO’s “Dance Hall,” of which 
Arthur Lake and Olive Borden 
bead the cast, and with a vaude 
bill. 


MAY DO “GLITTERS” 

“All That Glitters” is under 
consideration by Belasco and Cur- 
ran for presentation in their re- 
spective houses here and in San 
Francisco. It is not yet set but 
decision, yes or no, is expected to 
be made this week. 


EDDIE KAYE 

NOW 

Master of Ceremonies 
AT 

COFFEE DAN’S 

Los Angeles 

Who Is This Guy Frank Shaw?/ 



PAGE SIX 


INSIDE FACTS OF STAGE AND SCREEN 


SATURDAY, FEB. 1, 1930 



ACTS 

S(SIP(§QVQ, 


Legitimate 


One Year 


Published Every Saturday 

$4.00 Foreign 


$5.00 


Advertising Rates on Application 


As a bi-monthly publication : Entered as Second Class Matter, No- 
vember 17, 1924, at the Post Office at Los Angeles, California, under 
the Act of March 3, 1879. 

As a weekly publication: Entered as Second Class Matter, April 
29, 1927, at the Post Office at Los Angeles, California, under the Act 
of March 3, 1879. 


Published by 

Inside Facts Publishing Company, Inc. 

800-801 Warner Bros. Downtown Bldg., Los Angeles, Calif. 
Telephone TUcker 7832 


JACK JOSEPHS 
ARTHUR WM. GREEN 
WILLIAM C. OWENS - 


- - - President and Editor 

Vice Pres, and Counsel 

- Secretary and General Manager 


Vol. XI 


Saturday, February 1, 1930 


No. 5 


The actor is a patient individual, so patient indeed that it 
ceases to be a virtue. 

Let the city lawmakers or the city law-enforcers do dirt 
to a retail merchant and up rise the retail merchants to de 
mand justice, forming organizations for the purpose. 

Let the realtors be touched, or the store owners ,or the 
Main Street peddlers, or what have you, and up to the city 
hall parade delegations and representatives telling their vot- 
ing strength; and things go better for them. 

But, perhaps from his itinerant life of past times, the 
actor has always been aloof from politics, casting his vote, 
when he did vote, individually and taking' what the law- 
makers and the law-enforcers handed him without so much 
as a feeble protest. 

And what has the result been? Why, just what was to 
be expected, to-wit, that of all classes "of people the actor 
gets least consideration of his legal rights. 

Suppose that a publishing house publishes a book which 
is barred from circulation for alleged indecency. Do the po- 
lice go down and arrest the linotype operators, the make- 
up men and the pressmen? They do not. Not by a jugful! 

Suppose an artist paints a pictures which the purists ob 
ject to, do the police run around town and find all of the 
models who have posed for it and cart them off to jail? They 
do not. 

Suppose a minister chooses to read from the Bible the 
story of Lot and his daughters, or of Jacob and his wife’s 
handmaiden, or of Sampson and Delilah, do the police cart 
the choir and the altar-boys off to prison? They do not. 

Or if some multi-millionaire chooses to steal a few mil 
lion dollars’ worth of oil wells from the government, do the 
police arrest all the station men who dispense the oil? Of 
course not. 

Carry on the examples as you will, you will find that the 
actors are the only hired employes in the world who are ar- 
rested for the alleged legal infractions of the employer. 

What an absurd thing it is that actors are forced to he 
the judges of plays which later on may result in jury deci- 
sions of a hair’s breadth. Consider “Bad Babies.” Arrested 
in San Francisco, the play is acquitted by a jury in seven 
minutes. Another jury might have found it guilty in ' seven 
minutes. Or another might have found it guilty in seven 
hours, or have acquitted it in seven hours — and the actor is 
supposed to be some kind of a prophet whereby the burden 
is upon him to fortell just what will happen long before the 
show is even produced ! 

Consider the thing a moment. It is hardly safe for an 
actor to sign a contract to appear in any of Shakespeare’s 
plays. If the producer decides to present them exactly as 
written ,why then off goes the actor to jail. And “Anna 
Christie, why an actor puts his liberty on the toss of a 
card when he signs for that. Or “Strange Interlude,” or 
The Front Page,” or “The Captive,” or any one of a hun- 
dred others. So there stands the actor, if he doesn’t sign he 
may lose a part in a play which will be a sensation and 
unmolested p if he does sign he may go to jail. And he, a 
hired hand, is forced to be the judge of this. Brothers, there 
is no other class of people in the world who would stand for 
such an outrageous infliction of the the laws except the 
Thespians. 

Recently Inside Facts, carried an exclusive story of an 
actors political organization which was being formed, with 
Charles Miller, Coast Equity representative, as one of the 
prime movers. Such an organization is a most worthy move 
and one which every actor should support. For let it be 
known far and wide that when the actors’ voting power is 
congealed into a solid weight, as is the case with other 
groups of men and women, then the actor will no longer be 
the poo-bah of the law but will have equal rights with other 
men, including that of not being hauled off to jail on the 
whim of each and every reformer who has a little political 
drag or a case of indigestion. 


THE NEW MOON’ 
MAJESTIC THEATRE 

LOS ANGELES 
(Reviewed Jan, 22) 

Lillian Albertson and Louis O. 
Macloon have stepped right out 
after another record. With this 
musical romance of the Spanish 
Mane by Oscar Hammerstein II, 
Frank Mandel and Laurence 
Schwab, with music by Sigmund 
Romberg, they have topped their 
“Desert Song” which, as everyone 
knows was the only money-mak- 
ing musical to have played the 
coast in years without number. 

Seemingly, anything “New 
Moon” hasn’t got, it doesn’t need, 
and if the customers don’f fall 
over themselves to buy it they de- 
serve the punishment of missing 
this most tuneful, colorful and ex- 
cellently cast light opera. 

The story is based on an inci- 
dent that happened during the 
French Revolution in one of the 
French colonies. The plot is in- 
finitely better than is either found 
or expected in most musical shows. 
It hangs together, is slightly melo- 
dramatic and entirely probable 
withal, having plenty of laughs, 
scenic effects of unusual grandeur 
and proper costuming. Principally 
the latter, for nudity and sugges- 
tion are conspicuously absent. 

And while on the subject, the 
chorus is deserving of more than 
passing mention. It is one of the 
best . both vocally and terpsi- 
chorically seen here in — well, 
since the “Desert Song” anyway. 
The male chorus in the “Strong- 
hearted Men” number are inspir- 
ing, . and throughout their voices 
dominate the robust character of 
the situations in a fine manner. 
The girls too are extraordinarily 
well trained and they actually 
dance. The dancing of both boys 
and girls is of the sort that was 
fast becoming a lost art among 
choruses. The intricate after-beat 
steps and machine-like movements 
together with the smooth manner 
in which the numbers were done 
was a treat. The credit goes to 
George Cunningham. 

The honors of the show go to 
Charles Boyle in the role of a 
comedy bond servant. This nice 
looking young lad, without seem- 
ing to try, kept his audience con- 
vulsed with a style of work all 
his own. He doesn’t mug broad- 
ly, his slapstick is delicately per- 
formed, his lines come over strict- 
ly j in character. In our opinion, 
he’s the comedy find of the year. 

The acting of John Merkyl was 
also something to brag about. He 
gave a very striking performance 
in the heavy role which he played 
with a swagger typical of the pe- 
riod. Garry Breckner, too, found 
a more pleasing part than that in 
which he was recently seen. If 
for nothing else, his “Interrupted 
Love Song” specialty would give 
him high rating in any man’s 
how. 

Perry Askam was still Perry 
Askam. This lad has a splendid 
voice and a fine figure with an 
ingratiating personality that is 
favored by the .women. He looks 
imposing and sings very well, but 
when the role calls for a bit of 
acting Perry is nowhere around. 
In one, however, singing “Lover, 
Come Back To Me” as a solo, he 
reached his highest point of excel- 
lence, but that was enough to 
satisfy anyone for one night. 

Josephine Houston, the new 
prima donna, was charming. She 
is the most pleasing sight the most 
critical bald head could ask. She 
has grace and verve. Her voice, 
while thin, was particularly true 
and sufficiently well-timbred to be 
thoroughly satisfying. Myrtis Crin- 
ley as the maid, had the soubrette 
role. This young lady is full of 


TEL-A-PHONEY 

Irj) JAMES MADISON 



SIGN OPERA SINGER 


Grace Moore, soprano with the 
Metropolitan Opera Company, has 
been signed by M-G-M. Getting 
her signature followed signing on 
a long-term contract of Lawrence 
Tibbett, lead of “The Rogue’s 
Song,” now showing at the Chi- 
nese, and public reaction show- 
ing a warm reception to operatic 
screen signing. 


REPORT FIG. LEASE 


It is reported that Marjorie 
Rambeau and Hampton Del Ruth 
have taken a lease on the Fig- 
ueroa Playhouse where they are 
to present a series of plays fea- 
turing Miss Rambeau. Miss Ram- 
beau recently concluded a very 
successful engagement at the Vine 
Street Theatre in Hollywood 
where she appeared in three plays. 


Hello, Charles Lindbergh. 
Hello, James Madison. 
What’s new? 

We are deserting the eagle 
for the stork. 


Hello, A1 Smith. 

Hello, James Madison. 

What do you think of an 
individual who believes this 
country should be bone dry? 

Pie has mental dandruff. 


Hello, Sid Marion. 

Hello, James Madison. 

How is it that France won 
the navy parley? 

They know how to parley 
vous. 


Hello, Lon Chaney. 

Hello, James Madison. 

Has increased salary induced 
you to finally desert silent 
pictures? 

Money talks. 


Hello, Pat Dowling. 

Hello, James Madison. 

My brains are very mellow. 

No wonder, they’ve been 
'aged in wood. 


Hello, Nat Carr. 

Hello, James Madison. 

Why is almond brittle like 
the Napa Asylum? 

Both are chock full of nuts. 


Hello, George Yeoman. 

Plello, James Madison. 

Why are old maids refrain- 
ing from using cold cream? 


They do not care 
chapless winter. 


for 


Hello, Will Rogers. 

Hello, James Madison. 

What’s the latest news about 
the arms conference? 

Ireland, Switzerland and 
Jerusalem have agreed to sink 
their navies. 


Hello, Congressman Oscar 
de Priest. 

Hello, James Madison. 

President Hoover declares 
that all laws should be obeyed. 

Then why not also observe 
the fourteenth and fifteenth 
amendments? 


Hello, Mary Boland. 

Plello, James Madison. 

What is your description of 
Watts? 


A town where they 
wave at passing trains. 


still 


B.B.B. Says: 

The CAMPUS TRIO 
were down — real good 
music. PETER B. KYNE 
spent an enjoyable eve- 
ning. 

• • •• 

P. S. — The CELLAR is at 
Cosmo Street and Hollywood 
Boulevard . . . between Vine 
and Cahuenga . . . the phone 
numbers are GRanite 8 3 8 2 
and HOllywood 9 159 . . . 
parking is free at the lot 
across from the CELLAR . . . 
the CHRYSLER and SAM- 
SON’S are there. 

Thank You. 


giggle-getting talent. Her eccen- 
tricities won her a full mead of 
deserving congratulations. She 
dances very well and sings not 
badly, 

David Reese also deserves much 
praise for his singing as well as 
for his acting. He was a decided 
asset to the cast. Others who had 
parts were Howard Nugent, Edd 
Russell, John Wagner, Dee Lo- 
retta, Violette Derbeck, Jerry Jar- 
tette, Wally Phelps and William 
Wagner. 

° f the musical number that 
scored heavily the outstanding hits 
were “Marianne,” “The Girl on 
the Prow, Gorgeous Alexander,” 

h Int f3 U K ed „ Love Son s’’ “Stout- 
hearted Men,” “One Kiss,” “Lover 
Come Back To Me,” “Ladies of 
the Jury" and “Wanting You” 

The direction of Miss Albertson 
was exceptionally well done The 
music under the baton of Cecil 
Stewart was one of the features of 
show. 

Jacobs. 


IS NORMA’S DADDY 


George Irving has been cast as 
Norma Shearer’s father in M-G- 
M’s picturization of “Divorcee,” 
which Robert Z. Leonard is di- 
recting. 


LETTERS 

There are letters at the Los 
Angeles office of INSIDE 
FACTS for the following : 

BIDMEAD Bros. 

BUCK, Guy 
COLLINS, Harry 
EDWARDS, Chas. H. 
GILLETTE, Bobby 
MacDONALD, E. Jeanne 
MAHRA The Great 
MASON, Marvel 
PARSONS, Ruth 
TAYLOR, Slade (Mike) 
TIFFANY, Owen 


HERBERTS 

Good Food With Courtesy 
OPEN ALL NIGHT 

745-749 South Hill Street Los Angeles 

Bachelor Hotel & Grill 

151-159 Powell Street San Francisco 


ALLES 


SHOW 

PRINT 


ME. 4872—224 E. 4th St., Los Angeles— ME. 4873 


WHEN IN TIJUANA 

Visit the Rendezvous of the Profession 

ALEX BAR and 
RESTAURANT 

Opposite the Foreign Club 

FRENCH AND ITALIAN CUISINE PAR EXCELLENCE 
FINEST IMPORTED LIQUORS AND WINES 

Proprietors Alex Cardini and Johnnie Montepagno 


SATURDAY, FEB. 1, 1930 


INSIDE FACTS OF STAGE AND SCREEN 


PAGE SEVEN 


VANCOUVER, B. C. 

A. K. MacMartin 

REPRESENTATIVE 
901 Bekins Bldg. 


^NORTHWEST 

JEAN ARMAND DISTRICT MANAGER 
WASHINGTON :: OREGON :: IDAHO :: 


MONTANA 


SEATTLE 

Joseph D. Roberts 

REPRESENTATIVE 
1118 Northern Life Tower 


THEME GROSSES 




ACT IN PAST WKS, 


SEATTLE, Jan. 30. — The past 
six or eight weeks in this town 
have witnessed a rapidly changing 
barometer of theatre grosses. 
Many stellar attractions have been 
offered the public, of which sev- 
eral took a husky wallop from the 
frozen fist of old king winter. 

Throughout the period, of all 
the houses, possibly John Ham- 
rick’s two 800-seaters, the Music Box 
and Blfle Mouse, have best weath- 
ered the storm. Opening War- 
ner Bros’, all-color classic, “Show 
of Shows,” on Xmas day, the Mu- 
sic Box continued to stand ’em on 
the sidewalk for three consecutive 
weeks. It must be granted, though, 
that the intake would have taken a 
25 per cent tilt, had not a blanket 
of snow which later froze solidly 
over all streets and sidewalks 
throughout the city, fallen. Fol- 
lowing this at the Music Box, 
came John Barrymore’s first all- 
talker, “General Crack,” currently 
in and holding up well, consider- 
ing the elements. At the Blue 
Mouse across the way, the popular 
impresario has showed, successive- 
ly, “Tiger Rose,” “Wall Street,” 
“Footlights and Fools,” “The Lost 
Zeppelin” and “The Aviator,” 
mediocre attractions, but the popu- 
larity of the house kept them 
coming. 

Liberty Opens 

The greatest furore during this 
period was caused by the reopen- 
ing of the old Liberty Theatre on 
First avenue. The Liberty was 
included in the deal when Jensen 
& Von Herberg sold to North 
American which was, in turn, later 
absorbed by West Coast. Through 
(Continued on Page 9) 


VANCOUVER 

By A. K. MacMARTIN 


Practically all down town houses 
in this city are now wired. The 
last two to go talkie being the 
Globe, on Granville street, oper- 
ated by Bill Brown, and the 
Royal on Hastings, which is con- 
trolled by W. P. Nichols. The 
last named operator has also 
taken over a small house on Gran- 
ville street south, called the Fair- 
view. He is having it enlarged, a 
marquee erected in the front and 
Western Electric wiring installed. 
These are second and third run 
houses with a grind policy. 

* * * 

The Maurice Colbourne Com- 
pany closed at the Vancouver 
Theatre, after playing a return 
engagement, Saturday, January 25.- 
They put over three bills in their 
last week, in an extra . effort to 
attract patronage but without re- 
sult. On the opening Monday 
night, two women’s clubs filled 
the house as guests but even their 
boosting failed to bring any busi- 
ness. The three bills were “Arms 
and the Man,” “John Bull’s Other 
Island” and “Man and Superman.” 
This company of English players 
is a strong aggregation of clever 
troupers. Their productions are 
well staged and should draw big 
patronage but for some reason the 
fans failed to deposit at the b. o. 
* * * 

Instructions have been issued by 
the Famous Players Canadian Cor- 
poration to their architects to pro- 
ceed with the plans for the new 
half million dollar theatre they will 
erect at Broadway and Granville. 
Another new house they will build 
will be at Rossland, B. C. This 
will be a much smaller one costing 
only $40,000. Both theatres will be 
equipped with the latest type talkie 
apparatus. 

(Continued on Page 9) 


SSUES STATEMENT 
1 JENSEN IT 


, G. 



SEATTE, January 30.— Earl R. 
Crabb, northwest manager for 
Fox West Coast Theaters, Inc., 
issued a special statement to In- 
side Facts regarding the suit filed 
last week by the Jensen Invest- 
ment Co. and Mary £. von Her- 
berg, holders of preferred stock in 
the Pacific Northwest Theaters, 
Inc., when the former filed suit 
against the latter and the Fox 
West Coast Theaters Inc., asking 
that they either be paid certain 
moneys alleged due as past divi- 
dends or that a receiver be ap- 
pointed. 

“I have just Received a wire 
from Jeff Lazarus regarding a 
telephone conversation held be- 
tween M'r. H. B. Franklin and 
Mr. von Herberg. 

“Application for dismissal of 
the suit by Mr. von Herberg will 
immediately be made following an 
explanation by Mr. Franklin re- 
garding dividend policies in the 
past and for the future.” 

Internal Differences 

Crabb also stated that the suit 
was one of purely internal differ- 
ences and has absolutely no con- 
nection with the actual manage- 
ment of either the Pacific North- 
( Continued on Page 10) 


No Written 
Contract For 
Eddie Peabody 


SEATTLE, January 30.— One 
of the most unusual arrangements 
between a producer and headline 
artist, which bespeaks for the 
confidence of the latter in the 
former, came to light this week 
with Peabody’s opening at the 
Fifth Avenue Theatre here. 

It is understood that there is no 
written agreement between Mrs. 
Eddie Peabody, wdio is the dimin- 
utive banjo-artist’s sole represen- 
tative, and Marco, the producer, 
all details being strictly verbal. 

RENAME BAND 


SEATTLE, Jan. 30. — Arthur 
Clausen’s Seattle Grand Orchestra 
was recently refhristened by Man- 
ager Bob Blair of this Publix 
stand, the Seattle Serenaders. The 
personnel of the band is made up 
of capable men, each one a mas- 
ter of his instrument. Arthur 
Clausen, as leader, is heard at fre- 
quent intervals, in pleasing violin 
solos. John Barbour, as concert 
master, heads the string section. 
The remainder of the personnel 
includes Grant Kuhn, William 
Haine, George Kirchner, Barney 
Goodman, Herbert Taylor, Otto 
Lorbeer, Floyd Smullin, Ed Carey, 
Jr., Bid Haw, Thomas Cubbfn and 
Lou Jepson. 


BETTER WEATHER 
7 GET B!Z 




SEATTLE, Jan. 30, — Even 
though the bad w%ather let up, 
with the thermometer climbing a 
few degrees, business with the ex- 
ception of the Fifth Avenue, where 
Peabody opened to a smashing 
first week, remained at a low ebb. 

A brand new stunt, credited to 
Charles Kurtzman, of the Publix 
theatres on the coast, tied the 
papers up with a daily editorial 
and free ads on a “Come Down- 
town Week.” 

All the local sheets went heavy 
for the stunt, which also assisted 
in bringing out the hybernated lo- 
cals to the business and theatre 
district. 

Peabody at the Fifth Avenue 
took the cream of the long- 
hoarded dough to the tune of 
$19,000 for his first week here. 
“The Lone Star Ranger” was the 
screen feature. Credit Marco’s 
“Black and Gold Idea” with some 
of the gross. Peabody brought 
’em in. Nice business and puts 
the house well out of the red. 

The Publix Seattle did $14,000 
with “Sally.” Good business. 
Tough to get ’em to go up the 
hill here. Clausen and his sym- 
phony orchestra, also Ron and 
(Continued on Page 10) 



My Dear Marco:- 

In Justifying Your Showmanlike Faith In My Engagement 

My Thanks .... and Reply Is ... . 


“GROSSES SPEAK LOUDER THAN WORDS” 


In All Sincerity 

EDDIE PEABODY 


FREELANCING 


Indefinite Engagement 
Fifth Avenue Theatre, Seattle 


UNDER THE SOLE PERSONAL MANAGEMENT OF MRS. EDDIE PEABODY 




PAGE EIGHT 


INSIDE FACTS OF STAGE AND SCREEN 


SATURDAY, FEB. 1, 1930 


Greetings! To the Northwest Office! 


a 


TINY 




FROM 


BURNETT 


AND HIS ORCHESTRAS 


R.K.O. SEATTLE 

14 YEARS 



VENETIAN GARDENS 


AT 


THE OLYMPIC 

The Northwest’s Finest Hotel 

ONE YEAR 



L 



E IS 



SEATTLE, Jan. 30.— Establish- 
ing an enviable record, Bebs Mal- 
loy and his girl revue, currently 
in at State Theatre, are enjoying 
wide popularity with local tans. 
The unit, comprising Malloy as 
hoofer and comic; Les Randall, 
straights and songs, and six gals, 
is now in .its thirty-fourth week 
at the stand. Malloy is a new- 
comer to local show biz, having 
only broken in less than a year 
ago. He showed, from the start, 
much promise with his feet, and, 
by using his head and the glean- 
ings from experienced troupers, 
Malloy has continued to click 
from the start. 

Prior to taking over the shows 
at the State, Malloy produced a 
small show for Universal TheaTres 
at their Winter Garden here, 
which was his first pro try. He 
clicked with the fans untown, and 
had no trouble when Uncle Carl 
unloaded to land at the State. 

Malloy stages a routine of line 
numbers, that have the girls look- 
ing sweet, mixed in with some 
new and snappy black-outs that 
get the laughs. The gals include 
Evelyn Ruth, Evelyn Kelly, Alice 
Lee, Anita Mitchell, Jerry Dean, 
Goldie Hall and Revay Howard. 

MYRTLE STRONG NOW 
IN 7TH MONTH AT ORPH 


SEATTLE, Jan. 30.— A grad- 
uate of the Chicago Conservatory 
of Music and a pupil of Milton 
Charles, Myrtle Strong, featured 
organist at R-K-O’s Orpheum 
Theatre here, is now in her sev- 
enth month at the giant console 
of this popular vaude house. 

Myrtle brings into play all her 
technical training, together with a 
creative genius all her own that 
never fails to sell her concert 
numbers to the assembled throngs. 
Miss Strong varies her stuff from 
classics to late popular numbers, 
oftimes using the themies of a 
coming picture attraction. This 
miss has plenty of personality, 
looks mighty sweet on the organ 
stool, and knows how to sell her 
stuff. 


THREE MOSQUITOS BIG 
IN AFTERNOON DRAW 


SEATTLE, January 30. — Those 
with the idea that the radio audi- 
ence is small in the afternoon 
would have that belief shattered 
if they' were to work the “Musi- 
cal Side Show” with the “Three 
Mosquitos” at KOL in Seattle 
each afternoon. 

From the first day of the Musi- 
cal Side Show requests began to 
pour in from listeners. Within 
four weeks after the beginning of 
the program there were so many 
requests that the “Mosquitos” 
couldn’t begin to handle them. 
This offering is very informal and 
takes the dialer right into the 
circle. All three lads are comed- 
ians and vary their entertainment 
to the extent that there is never 
too much of anything. 

It has been rumored from quite 
authentic circles that scouts for 
NBC have cast an eye over the 
trio and pronounced their work 
quite acceptable to be broadcast 
for a larger circle of listeners. 

Pinkerton Day, baritone; Ken 
Stuart, tenor; and Ivan Ditmars, 
pianist, make up the trio. 

PROJECTIONISTS INSTALL 
NEW OFFICERS OF NO. 11 


SEATTLE, Jan. 30. — At a ban- 
quet held in the quarters of the 
Ben F. Shearer Co., the officers 
of the Vancouver, B. C., Chapter 
No. 11 of the American Projec- 
tionists’ Society installed the offi- 
cers of the newly organized Se- 
attle branch which will be known 
as Chapter No. 17. 

Officers of this new organiza- 
tion are Richard Crist, president; 
George Kalushe, secretary; E. A. 
Clark, treasurer, and P. A. Snider, 
sergeant-at-arms, with additional 
charter members in Chas. Crick- 
more, Harry Lampman, Frank 
Myers, Elmer Blicken, Harold 
Simpson, Fred Jacky and Fred 
Jienecke. 

Meetings will be held bi-month- 
ly, with attention paid to the new 
technical details which arise from 
time to time in the matter of 
sound and color projection. 

Lockslev Clark, Marvin H. 
Thoreau, John R. Foster, Will 
Tenney, J. Hank Leslie and W. 
E. McCartney were the officers 
of the Vancouver chapter who- 
came down for the installation. 


Orchestra 

Reviews 


TEX HOWARD’S BAND 
TRIANON BALLROOM 

SEATTLE 

(Reviewed Jan. 25) 

Tex Howard and his eleven 
“Tigers” opened their engagement 
at the Trianon Ballroom here to a 
nice reception. The big dance spot 
was packed to the guards this 
night, with long lines patiently 
awaiting at the b. o. to buy their 
tickets. Tex takes his men through 
their routines in smooth, showman- 
like fashion. A drummer by trade, 
Tex has long forsaken the sticks 
and tom-toms for the baton, and 
he wields the latter like he knows 
what’s it all about. And he does. 

Paul McRea, Randy Ball and 
Jimmy Murphy make up the sax 
section. This trio wields thirteen 
different horns between them, and 
their playing, whether a hot fox 
trot or a soothing waltz, is clear, 
melodious and powerful. Crom. 
Owens and Sid Johnston handle 
the trumpets, and emit some hot 
notes from their instruments. Gor- 
don Green toots the trombone with 
clarity, resonance and power. 
Green’s unmuted work on the bal- 
lads is especially pretty. Irv An- 
tes tickles the ivories. Mace 
Charmberlain is on the banjo, and 
his strumming aids materially in 
gaining the rhythm for which Tex 
Howard’s boys have become 
known. Harry McAllister is fast 
and accurate on the drums. Harry 
Reid plays bass, and his work on 
this difficult horn is ever outstand- 
ing and of material worth to the 
band. 

Jimmy Murphy, Gordon Green 
and Mace Chamberlain trio up for 
song interpolations. Two tenors 
and a baritone, their voices blend 
well, their diction is flawless and 
their crooning is a treat for sore 
ears. Among the numbers which 
the boys rendered tonight, and 
which went into the encore class, 
were “Song of the Nile,” “Singing 
In the Bathtub,” “Chant of the 
jungle,” “Wonderful Something,” 
“Nobody’s Using It Now” and 
“Should I?” An outstanding or- 
chestra offering was Robbins’ late- 
ly compiled medley which includes 
“Just You, Just Me,” “Singing In 
the Rain,” “H o w Am I To 


TOM OLSEN, LOCAL BOY, 
WITH FOX MET HOUSES 


SEATTLE, Jan. 30, — Word has 
just reached Seattle of Tom Ol- 
sen’s affiliation with the Fox 
Metropolitan houses in upper New 
York State. Tommy is a local 
lad who got his first introduction 
to the theatrical biz here some six 
years ago under the sponsorship 
of A1 Finklestein, at that time film 
buyer for Jensen and von Her- 
berg and now an executive of the 
Fox-Pacific Corporation. Finkle- 
stein sent Tommy up to the Para- 
mount Theatre manager’s school 
in New York, from which he 
graduated along with such now 
well-known figures as Harry 
Wareham and Steve Perutz. After 
his graduation, Olsen was sent 
out to Salt Lake City from 
whence he went to Denver. His 
next move was to New Orleans, 
where he handled publicity on the 
Saenger chain of suburban spots. 
In November of 1929, Olsen left 
the Publix organization to enter 
the Fox outfit. After a few months 
in and around New York City, he 
received the promotion which 
netted him his present spot, with 
headquarters at the Avon The- 
atre, Utica, New York. 

JOINS CAMPBELL 

SAN FRANCISCO, Jan. 30.— 
Reginald Tompkins, former Los 
Angeles trade paper man, has 
joined the local offices of Lloyd 
Campbell Publications as assist- 
ant to Campbell. In addition to 
Tompkins here, Campbell has 
placed Billy Moss in Chicago. 


M OROSCO OUT 

SAN FRANCISCO, Jan. 30.— 
Oliver Morosco has left the San 
Francisco-New York Productions. 
Robert Warwick remains head of 
the theatrical organization. 


Know?” and “Pagan Love Song.” 
Charley Gould, a stand-by per- 
former, warbled a chorus on “How 
Am I To Know?” and Elsie Jew- 
ell, house soprano, crooned the Pa- 
gan number. Elsie has a nice 
voice that carries well through the 
big hall, and her several numbers 
during the evening brought plenty 
of applause. 

Tex’s band is a natural for any 
ballroom on this coast. The boys 
have plenty of personality, wear 
their clothes well and know how 
to sell their music. 



Pill AUTO SHOW 


SEATTLE, Jan. 30. — Not to be 
outdone by San Francisco, whose 
committee on this year’s auto 
show has scheduled Maurice Chev- 
alier for a series of personal ap- 
pearances during the body and 
spark plug exhib in the bay city, 
the local automobile association 
has sent H. E. Stimpson, its presi- 
dent, to Hollywood to personally 
proffer Paul Whiteman, king of 
jazz, an offer of $1 0,000 to bring 
his band here for the annual auto 
and transportation pageant. The 
Seattle Automobile Association will- 
hold its show in the civic audi- 
torium here the week of February 
23, and the desire of the sponsors 
is to have Paul and his boys play 
daily at every session. 

SYL HARPERIN BAND 
WINNING BIG FAVOR 


SEATTLE, Jan. 30. — Under thf 
leadership of Syl Halperin, whc 
recently left Vic Meyers’ organ' 
ization to assume the helm of Me 
Elroy’s Columbia Recording Or- 
chestra, this unit at C. J. “Pops’ 
McElroy’s local emporium o: 
terpsichore has molded itself intc 
one of the most formidable danc< 
bands in these parts. The elever 
lads play plenty hot rhythm, anc 
their local following includes th< 
majority of the bunion-busting ad 
diets. The orchestral offerings art 
enhanced by the song interpola- 
tions of Ted Mullen, who has beer 
with the band for several years 
and who continues to click wit! 
both the ferns and their escorts. 

BUSINESS GOOD 


SAN FRANCISCO, Jan. 30.— 
Returning from a two weeks 1 
trip to Denver, Earl Craven, head 
of the American Music Co., re- 
ports gooid business condition? 
there for his firm. 

VIOLA LEACH DIES 


SAN FRANCISCO, Jan. 30.- 
According to Eastern advices, Vi 
ola Leach, former player at thi 
Alcazar here, died in New Yorl 
last week. 


THE MUSICAL SHOWMAN 

OWEN SWEETEN 


GREETINGS 
TO THE 
N. W. OFFICE 


SWEET TONIC FOR ANY BOX OFFICE 
NOW— GUEST CONDUCTOR OF 
VIC MEYERS ORCHESTRA AT THE 


FOX THEATRES, - 


SEATTLE 


SATURDAY, FEB. 1, 1930 


INSIDE FACTS OF STAGE AND SCREEN 


PAGE NINE 



DO UP ID DOWN 
IN PAST m IS. 


(Continued from Page 7) 
some litigation that no one could 
understand, J. and V. got the 
house back. They put a pile of 
dough into it for new seats, car- 
pets, drapes, complete projection 
equipment, a Western Electric 
sound installation, etc., and opened 
the house following the greatest 
barrage of publicity that has ever 
preceded a theatre opening in this 
end of the country. Full page 
ads, in two colors, were run daily 
for two weeks prior to the open- 
ing day, January 4. The house 
clicked from the opening gun, 
with J. & V. capitalizing on their 
personalities and throwing up the 
slogan, “The Liberty Has Always 
Had a Good Show.” 

The opening of this house was 
the signal for a lively price war. 
Showing, currently, first run Pathe 
and RKO quickies, the Liberty 
opened heavily ballyhooing its 
“popular prices” — 15c till one; 25c 
till six, and 35c after supper. 
Local second runs charging two- 
bits in the afternoon, were forced 
to come down a peg, and even John 
Hamrick’s Blue Mouse, which has 
retained a straight half buck pol- 
icy since it installed Seattle’s first 
Vitaphone three and a half years 
ago, is now plastering its ads, bill- 
boards and lobby with a 25c till 
six snipe. Fox-West Coast, in an 
effort to combat the Liberty, 
changed its policy for the Coliseum 
by meeting the J. & V. prices and 
setting in only first-run all-talkies. 
It appears that the two local show- 
men are out to give the opposish 
a strenuous race. They have the 
public behind them, it seems, as 
the big Liberty sees long lines of 
outside standees. 

W. C. Bucks Weather 
West Coast have withstood the 
weather calamity fairly well since 
the holidays. Joan Crawford in 
“Untamed,” her first squeakie; 
“Romance of the Rio Grande,” 
billed as a sequel to “In Old Ari- 
zona” and possibly one other opus 
kept the Fifth Avenue in the 
black. But the big bolster for this 
house came last week when Marco 
shoved Eddie Peabody in for a 
limited stay as M. C. Eddie im- 
mediately proceeded to smash the 
existing week-end record, "which 
he himself held, and has brought 
plenty of profitable activity to the 
Fifth in his first two weeks there. 
The other West Coast stand, the 
Fox, took a new lease on life with 
the booking in of “Sunny Side 
Up,” together with Vic Meyers’ 
radio dance band replacing Joe 
Sampietro’s aggregation. Follow- 
ing “Sunny Side” the new Fox 
had “Hot For Paris” for two 
mighty profitable stanzas. Owen 
Sweeten is currently in at this 
stand as conductor of Vic’s band| 
Publix, due to its geographical 
location, five blocks up the hill 
from the whirl of traffic, was, 
possibly, hardest hit by the ele- 


VANCOUVER 


(Continued from Page 7) 

The Capitol led the parade this 
week with the biggest b. o. tak- 
ings of any house in town. Ron- 
ald Colman in “Bulldog Drum- 
mond” and Alfredo Meunier and 
his Capitolians being the draw. 
The new Orpheum was next with 
a five-act bill of vaudeville head- 
lined by Healy & Cross, and 
Paramount’s “Half Way to 
Heaven.” The Strand had Billie 
Dove in the “Painted Angel,” and 
their last F. and M. revue, “Jazz 
Temple.” The Dominion had Fox’s 
“Lucky Star” with Janet Gaynor 
and Chas. Farrell. The Pan split 
the week with “4 Devils” and 
“Behind That Curtain.” At the 
Vancouver Maurice Colbourne and 
his English company played three 
different bills to poor business. 


EXCHANGE CHANGES 


SEATTLE, Jan. 30. — Recent 
changes at United Artists Ex- 
change here include th^ following: 
D. J. McNerney goes to the San 
Francisco office, Fred Gage comes 
to Seattle from Salt Lake, Fred 
Lind is still covering Washington 
territory and Fred Talbot is still 
handling Oregon. 


BUSHON IN N. W. 

SEATTLE, January 30. — David 
Bushon, Western sales manager of 
the United Artists Corporation, 
has been in Seattle for the past 
week. He left last Thursday for 
Los Angeles where he expects to 
stay for about ten days. 


ments. Ronald Colman in “Con- 
demned,” did fairly, while Maurice 
Chevalier in “The Love Parade” 
and Marilyn Miller in “Sally” un- 
doubtedly turned in a profit. The 
last two productions would un- 
questionably have brought another 
five grand apiece had there been 
a weather break. The fans found 
it tough battling the icy pavements 
up those five hilly blocks. 

Legit, Vaud Did Well 

The legit field, including vaude- 
ville, wasn’t hit quite as hard as 
the pictures. Duffy at his Presi- 
dent, has done consistently well, 
while Maurice Colbourne in a 
repertoire of Bernard Shaw plays 
and Gordon McLeod in “The 
Ringer” at Erlanger’s Metropoli- 
tan both showed a little in the 
black. RKO’s Orpheum didn’t 
slump much, and had a whale of 
a week right after New Year’s 
when Olsen and Johnson appeared. 
Rudy Vallee’s first screen at- 
tempt, “The Vagabond Lover,” 
held up fair, but took a wallop 
from the ice man. 

But one real bust was registered 
during this period, and that by 
Jack Russell and his musical com- 
edy troupe which folded up after 
but four weeks at the Pantages. 
The initial price scale m^y be at- 
tributed as one of the direct causes 
of the flop. The show was well 
enough, but this town is too dime 
conscious, and that 65 cent night 
tariff scared the natives the first 
two weeks. And after that, it was 
too late. The opening week was 
heavy and profitable. 


NOW— 40th WEEK— STATE THEATRE 
SEATTLE 

BEB MALLOY -EVELYN RUTH 

SINGING and DANCING FUNSTERS 


Fanchon and Marco 
Route List of “Ideas” 


GRAND OPERA CO, 
TO OPEN FEB. 18 


Following is the Fanchon and Marcos 
Ideas route schedule, with the opening 
dates, all of the current month, in pa- 
renthesis besides the name of the town : 

PASADENA (30) 

Colorado Theatre 

“Zeppelin” Idea 

LOS ANGELES (30) 

Loew’s State 
‘ ‘Eyes’ ’ Idea 

Wells and Winthrop Six Candrevas 
Bob and Ula Buroff 

SAN DIEGO (30) 

Fox Theatre 

“Trees” Idea 

Shapiro ond O’Malley Nayons Birds 

Keo, Toki and Yoki 

LONG BEACH (31) 

West Coast Theatre 
“Peasant” Idea 

Diehl Sisters General Ed Lavine 

■June Worth Bert Prival 

Belcher Dancers 
HOLLYWOOD (30) 

Egyptian Theatre 
“Manila Bound” Idea 
Romero Family Stella Royal 

Harry and Frank Seamon 
FRESNO (31-2) 

Wilson Theatre 
‘ ‘Ivory’ ’ Idea 

Betty Lou Webb Hy Meyer 

Four High Hatters Goetz and Duffy 
Christel LeVine and Ted Reicard 

SAN JOSE (3-6) 

California Theatre 
“Ivory” Idea 

Betty Lou Webb Hy Meyer 

FourHigh Haters Goetz and Duffy 
Christel LeVine and Ted Reicard 

SAN FRANCISCO (31) 

Fox Theatre 
“Overtures” Idea 
Toots Novelle Harry Rapee 

Edison and Gregory Huff and Huff 
Helen Hille 
OAKLAND (31) 

Fox Oakland 
‘ ‘Desert’ ’ Idea 

Ed and Morton Beck Muriel Stryker 
Cropley and Violet Manuel Lopez 
Carla Torney Girls 
SACRAMENTO (31) 

Senator Theatre 
“International” Idea 
Frederico Flores Osaka Boys 

Billy Carr Markel and Faun 

Mignon Laird 
SALEM, ORE. (1-3) 

Elsinore Theatre 
‘ ‘Hot Dominoes’ ’ Idea 
Les Klicks Pall Mall 

Dexter, Webb and Diaz 
PORTLAND (30) 

Broadway Theatre 
* ‘Uniforms ’ ’ Idea. 

Armand & Perez Joy Brothers 

Sylvia Shore & Helen Ruth Hamilton 
SEATTLE (30) 

Fifth Avenue Theatre 
“Carnival Russe” Idea 
Countess Sonia Sam Linfield & Co. 

Alex-SherBekefi 
Russian Sunrise Trio 
GREAT FALLS, MONT. (28-29) 
Grand Theatre 
“Black and Gold Idea” 

Four Kemmys Maxine Hamilton 

Arnold Grazer Lee Wilmot 

BUTTE, MONT. (30-2) 

Fox Theatre 
“Black and Gold” Idea 
Four Kennys Maxine Hamilton 

Arnold Grazer Lee Wilmot 

DENVER, COLO. (30) 

Tabor Grand 

“Jezz Temple” Idea 

Wally Jackson Nora Schiller 

Gus Elmore Sylvia Dorse 

Temple Beauties 

ST. LOUIS (31) 

Fox Theatre 
“Idea In Green” 

Doris Nierly Franklyn Record 

Moran & Weston 
Way Watts & Arminda 


PLAY TO OPEN 


SEATTLE, January 30. : — “The 
Makropoulos Secret,” by Karl Ca- 
pek, will be seen at the Metro- 
politan Theatre on Friday and 
Saturday, February 7 and 8, when 
the Moroni Olsen Players offer 
their second visit to Seattle for 
the current season. This play is 
new to Seattle audiences. 


MILWAUKEE (31) 

Wisconsin Theatre 
‘ ‘Far East’ ’ Idea 

Frank Stever 2 Jacks & 2 Queens 

Helen Fachaud Ruth Kadamatsu 

M. Sanami & Co. Joan Hardcdstle 

DETROIT, MICH. (31) 

Fox Detroit 
“Accordion” Idea 

Burt & Lehman Theo. & Katya 

Nat Spector Mary Price 

Arnold Hartman 

NIAGARA FALLS, N. Y. (1-4) 
Strand Theatre 
‘ ‘Kisses’ ’ Idea 

Mabel and Marcia Joe & Jane McKenna 
Mitzi Mayfair Will Cowan 

Wallen and Barnes E. Flat Four 
Dave Hacker Helen Aubrey 

UTICA, N. Y. (3) 

Gayety Theatre 
‘ ‘Kisses’ ’ Idea 
Joe & Jane McKenna 
Will Cowan Mabel & Marcia 

E Flat Four Mitzi Mayfair 

Helen Aubrey Dave Hacker 

Wallen & Barnes 

BUFFALO, N. Y. (31) 
Lafayette Theatre 

“Types” Idea 
Carlena Diamond 

Trado Twins Harold Stanton 

WORCESTER, MASS. (31) 

Palace Theatre 
‘ ‘Drapes’ ’ Idea 

Frank Melino & Co. Jerome Mann 
Dorothy Kelly 

SPRINGFIELD, MASS. (31) 




SEATTLE, January 30. — The 
Columbia Grand Opera Company 
will open at the Metropolitan on 
February 18 for seven erforrn- 
ances, following a long engage- 
ment in Los Angeles and at pres- 
ent playing in San Francisco. 

The chorus, under the direction 
of Alberto Conti, who recently 
came from the Royal Theatre, 
Lisbon, is said to be assembled 
from the southern opera associa- 
tion and said to be one of the 
finest found in a grand opera 
chorus. 


The company is under the di- 
rection of Alexander Bevani, whose 
principals include Myrna Sliarlow, 
Tina Paggi, Louisa Caselotti, El- 
sie Lee Wilson, Edith Mackey, 
Alicia Mums, Giuseppe Barsotti, 
Mario Fior,ella, Nino Piccaluga, 
Gennaro Barra, Galileo Parigi, 
Enrico Spada, Claudio Frigerio, 
Carlo Scattola. 


Palace Theatre 
“Columns” Idea 
Rome & Gaut Billy Rolls 

Niles Marsh Maxine Evelyn 

Dorothy Henley 
HARTFORD, CONN. (31) 

Capitol Theatre 
‘ ‘Gobs of Joy’ ’ Idea 
Pat West Scotty Weston 

Bailey and Barnum Coley 
Cook Sisters Loma Ruth 

Billy & Elsie Lewis Dolly Kramer 
Moore and Moore Johnny Ashford 
Jones and Howett Wanda Allen 
Henry Aguirre 

NEW HAVEN, CONN. (31) 

Palace Theatre 

“Hollywood Studio Girls” Idea 
Three Gobs Miles & Perlee ' 

Chas. Rozelle John Vale 

Lorris & Fermine 
BRIDGEPORT (31) 

Palace Theatre 

“Screenland Melodies” Idea 
David Reece Lucille Iverson 

Sherry Louise Everts & Lowry 

Karavaeff Franklin & Warner 

Lamberti Jack & Betty Welling 

WATERBURY, CONN. (31) 

Fox Theatre 
“Jazz Cinderella” Idea 
Mae Usher Albert Hugo 

Roy Rogers Billy Randall 

James Gaylord Pauline Alpert 

Adair & Stewart 

BROOKLYN, N. Y. (31) 

Fox Theatre 
“Gardens’ ’ Idea 
Slate Bros. Vina Zolle 

Moffa and Mae Cliff Nazzaro 

WASHINGTON, D. C. (31) 

Fox Theatre 

“Watermelon Blues” Idea 
Mammy and Her Ted Ledford 

Picks Louise & Mitchell 

Southern Steppers 

ATLANTA, GA. (31) 

Fox Theatre 
‘ ‘Sweet Cookies” Idea 
Eva Mandel Roy M. Loomis 

Jones & Hull Bobbe Tomson 

TULSA, OKLA. (31) 

Orpheum Theatre 
“Speed” Idea 
Black Cat Four 

Cal Norris Parker & Mack 

> Greyhounds Helen Burke 


BAND RE-SIGNS 


SAN FRANCISCO, Jan. 30.— 
The Laughner-Harris, orchestra, 
headed by Carol Laughner and 
Phil Harris has re-signed at the 
Hotel St. Francis and will re- 
main there for another six months. 
Since this organization opened 
there several months ago business 
has picked up to an appreciable 
degree. 


BETTY SHILTON THREE 
YEARS SEATTLE FAV 


SEATTLE, Jan. 30.- — Close to 
three years now have Seattle thea- 
tregoers been hearing Betty Shil- 
ton, popular young organist at 
Fox’s big Fifth Avenue Theatre 
here. Due to the fact that the 
Fifth Avenue houses the Fanchon 
and Marco stage units, Betty does 
not have the opportunity to play 
concerts, but she is heard daily, 
morning and evening, over radio 
station KOMO, the town’s leading 
ether occupier. 

Requests running into the thou- 
sands annually pour into Betty’s 
mail box, coming from every state 
in the Union, from Maine to 
California, and from Alaska to. 
Florida, not excluding the Ha- 
waiian and Philippine Islands and 
the Orient. 

When the occasion calls, Betty 
also serves to enhance the worth 
of the house orchestra’s . concerts 
and overtures. 


BOOKER SHIFTED 


SEATTLE, Jan. 30. — L. Carl- 
son, assistant booker at the Pathe 
Exchange here, 'has been trans- 
ferred to the San Francisco office. 


GREETING 

from 

OLYMPIC 
FILM STUDIOS 

2419 2nd Ave., Seattle 


SLIDES— TRAILERS 
INDUSTRIAL FILMS 


The Largest and Best 
Equipped Plant in 
the Northwest 


We’re Proud of Our Union! 

SEATTLE LOCAL No. 154 


Motion Picture Operators 


OUR CREED 

With 

Consideration 

OUR AIM IS UPWNRD 

Six-Day Week! 


T7 1 ® ur Members 

A Living Wage! 

for the 

r 11 8\ Our Employers 

Fair Working Conditions! 


& w iv The Public 

Employer 



PAGE TEN 


INSIDE FACTS OF STAGE AND SCREEN 


SATURDAY, FEB. 1, 1930 




SEME 
TO HAVE BIG YEAR 

SEATTLE, Jan. 30.— With W. 
J. “Bill” Douglas back at the 
helm of local No. 76, A. F. of M., 
Musicians’ Association of SeaTtle, 
local followers of this strong or- 
ganization look for the outfit to 
make rapid strides during the 
coming year. 

Douglas, after serving Local 
76 for fifteen years, resigned last 
spring to enter the employ of the 
American Broadcasting Company, 
now defunct. At the recent elec- 
tion of officers he was again in- 
stalled to the secretary’s office, 
and already members of the local 
are noticing renewed activity. 

Henri Pelletier, for many years 
president of the Musicians’ Asso- 
ciation, continues in the capacity, 
and he, with Douglas, are planning 
great things for the local. Among 
plans already formulated and set 
for early execution is the erection 
of a new, modern home for the 
union. The organization is now 
housed in an old residence in the 
heart of the business district which 
is conceded to be worth much 
more as business property than as 
the home of the union. The mu- 
sicians stand to realize a big 
chunk of profit if they elect to 
sell their present abode. 

BEmTIilER 
IT GET BIZ 


(Continued from Page 7) 

Don on the program due their 
share. 

Close behind came the Fox 
Theatre with the all-colored 
M-G-M picture, “Hallelujah” and 
Owen Sweeten’s opening week 
with Vic Meyers’ orchestra. Word- 
of-mouth brought plenty in to see 
the latter after opening day. while 
the former gets its share for the 
$12,500 gross. 

The Orpheum didn’t fare so well 
for the first time in many weeks, 
doing only an estimated $10,000 
with William Boyd in “His First 
Command” and five acts of vaude- 
ville. Lowest gross for some 
time. 

John Hamrick’s Music Box did 
over $9500 with Barrymore’s first 
week in “General Crack” in for 
three weeks. Across the street at 
the Blue Mouse, “The Lost Zep- 
pelin” did $5250. 

Duffy Players did their usual 
fair business with “Broken Dishes” 
to the tune of $3000. 

“Kibitzer” did a little better than 
$3250 for five days at the Met. 

HENRI LE BEL 

FOX THEATRE 
SEATTLE 
(Reviewed Jan. 26 ) 

Le Bel choses “Somewhere a 
Voice Is Calling” for his concert 
this week, and does with this 
semi-classic. With the house in 
darkness, Le Bel announces his 
number over the amplifiers from a 
mike on the console. As he rises, 
and the lights come up, he em- 
ploys a heavy combination of the 
bass and vox humanas. He shifts 
gracefully to the trumpets on the 
chorus, bringing in some pretty 
and effective bells. On the second 
chorus he uses a nifty combina- 
tion of deep bass, intermingled 
with the chimes. 

A beautiful blending of trump- 
ets, strings, vox and tremulas. 
with plenty of sock, for which 
Henri is known, and which he 
does well, furnishes the finale. The 
number is short, but it takes a 
powerful lot of applause. 

Bait. 


RADIO ANNOUNCER HAS 
RISKS BUT STICKS ON 


SEATTLE, January 30. — “Hold- 
by-hold” radio descriptions by 
Ken Stuart, versatile sports an- 
nouncer for KOL in Seattle, have 
been accredied with building up 
the audience from less than 100 
fans to 3500 cheering .patrons of 
the weekly wrestling bill at the 
Civic Auditorium. Ken knows the 
game and holds his listeners with 
a colorful account of the thrills 
and spills on the canvas. He has 
become a favorite among sport 
followers. Not that the announcer 
does not have his own thrills 
when sitting close to the ring with 
his “mike.” Ken has been slapped 
in the face by wrestlers diving or 
being thrown out of the ring, but 
he has gone down protecting his 
broadcasting apparatus with a 
wrestler on top of him, seldom 
failing his audience when there is 
a mat contest scheduled for the 
.evening. 



IT 



T 


(Continued from Page 7) 
west or Fox West Coast The- 
atres. 

“The matter of whether divi- 
dends have been declared or not 
is not essential. Our board of di- 
rectors, representing all of the 
stockholders, has approved the tak- 
ing of dividend moneys and put- 
ting them back into the business 
in the form of additional the- 
atre holdings, of which many have 
been added in the past two years.” 

The Pacific Northwe|t The- 
aters, Inc., is a Nevada corpora- 
tion, with 5000 shares of pre- 
ferred stock, of which the plain- 
tiffs own all that have been is- 
sued, and 200', 000 shares of no par 
value common stock, which car- 
ries the voting rights. 

The locals treated the above 
suit rather lightly, and those in 
the know along the rialto figured 
the publicity garnered did not jus- 
tify elaborate statements, figures, 
etc., given the press. 

Re-Open Liberty 

Jensen and von Herberg re- 
cently re-opened the Liberty The- 
atre here, hitting some of the dail- 
ies with a splurge campaign, with 
Seattleites figuring the pair of 
northwest show-men on their way 
to their former pinnacle in north- 
west theatrical circles. Aside from 
re-opening the Liberty they have 
not as yet made any move towards 
their former stand, except for this 
suit, which Don Graham, counsel 
for Fox West Coast Theatres 
openly characterized as spite work, 
asserting that competitive inter- 
ests were intending to hurt Fox 
enterprises. 

Graham also declared the Fox 
Theatere earnings here have been 
more than satisfactory, with 
amounts running into six figures 
-being used to finance expansion. 

CIRCUS SAILS 


SAN FRANCISCO, Jan. 29.— 
The F. A. Clare Circus sailed 
from here on the S.'S. Sierra last 
week for a tour of the South Seas 
and Australia. John Aasen, 8 foot, 
9 inch giant who was with Harold 
Lloyd in _ “Why Worry” is the 
featured side show attraction with 
the circus. 


W. C. EXECS IN CRASH 


SAN FRANCISCO, Jan. 30.— 
Charles Forbes, superintendent of 
construction for Fox West Coast 
Theatres, was killed and Charles 
Buckley, legal advisor for the 
same company, was injured as the 
result of an auto accident near 
Bakersfield last week. 


GREETINGS 

from 

Myrtle Strong 


ORGANIST 


R-K-0 


SEATTLE 


RETURNS TO HOLLYWOOD 


SEATTLE, Jan. 30. — Evelyn 
Hayes, daughter of George Hayes, 
stage hand at the Fifth Avenue, 
returned to Hollywood this week 
after spending the holidays with 
her parents. Evelyn, after gaining 
quite a rep in these parts as a 
dancer, landed in the movies and 
returns to fulfill contracts. 


ORGANISTS SWITCH 


SEATTLE, January 30. — Stan- 
ley Malotte, featured organist at 
the Portland Theatre, Portland, 
will open at the Publix Theatre 
February 7. The switch is made 
with Ron and Don who will re- 
lieve Malotte in the Portland 
house. 


JOINS KVI 


SEATTLE, Jan. 30.— Dick Rick- 
ard is the latest addition to the 
announcing staff at KVI, E. A. 
Barnard, manager, announces. 
Dick comes north from KHJ at 
Los Angeles, where he handled 
many of the big radio events of 
the year. He is a graduate of the 
Queen Anne High school and the 
University of Washington, class 
of 1927. 


CHEVALIER SECOND RUN 


SEATTLE, Jan. 30. — Publix 
opened an extended run of Mau- 
rice Chevalier’s “The Love Pa- 
rade” at the Metropolitan after a 
nice week’s biz at the ace house, 
the Seattle. The return showing 
is proving profitable. 


POST NOTICES 


SEATTLE, Ja-n. 30.— The Presi- 
dent Theatre, home of the Henry 
Duffy Players here, have posted 
their two weeks’ notice to close 
with the opening of Guy Bates 
Post yesterday in a two weeks 
engagement. 


TIBBETT IN CONCERT 


SEATTLE, January 30. — Law- 
rence Tibbett, famed baritone 
whose M-G-M picture “The Rogue 
Song” is a sensation in spots 
where it has been released and 
who is a member of the Metro- 
politan" Opera Company, will open 
in concert at the Metropolitan 
Theatre Tuesday, February 25. 



THERE IS 

NO GREATER 
ORGAN ENTERTAINMENT 



• • 


THAN 


• • 



Sole 

Originators 


of The Baby 
Console 



Note; THIS IS FULLY PROTECTED! 

SEATTLE 

THEATRE 




SATURDAY, FEB. 1, 1930 


INSIDE FACTS OF STAGE AND SCREEN 


PAGE ELEVEN 


Harold J. Bock 

Manager 

PHONE DOUGLAS 2213 


SAN FRANCISCO 


KRESS BLDG. 
935 Market St., 

Office Suite 504 


TAYLOR HOLMES’ DOOLEY’ GOOD; 
‘FERGUSON FAMILY’ IS WEAK 


SAN FRANCISCO, Jan. 29- 
Opening of Taylor Holmes in 
“Your Uncle Dudley” at Duffy’s 
Alcazar and the sudden closing 
of “Bambina” at the Curran and 
“Bad Babies” at the Capitol were 
highlights of the legit week. 

The Holmes show did nicely 
for Duffy at the Alcazar, receipts 
for the initial stanza totalling 
$5800. On the other hand, “The 
Ferguson Family” at the Presi- 



RECORD CO. CHIEFS 


SAN FRANCISCO, Jan. 29.— 
The Pacific Coast Record Corp., 
featuring "Elexo,” a new _ pro- 
cessed record, has been incor- 
porated here with a capitalization 
of $250,000. Max and Louis Graf, 
picture producers, head the com- 
pany. The firm's plant, now under 
way, will have complete equipment 
for recording, plating and pressing 
of records. 

Associated with the Graf Bros, 
in the technical department is J. 
J. Warner, formerly of St. Louis, 
where he has spent approximately 
20 years in experimenting with 
“Flexo,” a flexible material on 
which the new company will make 
all its recordings. In addition to 
“Flexo” Warner also has a port- 
able talking picture equipment for 
standard film which the firm will 
manufacture for home talkies. The 
equipment uses standard 6 mm. 
width film and will have disc re- 
cordings made in the plant. 

Advertising film, short subjects, 
personal recording and radio 
broadcasting are among the other 
varied departments to be con- 
tained in the Pacific Coast Record 
Corp. when the organization soon 
starts its schedule full blast. 


dent was very weak, drawing only 
$3200 for its seven days. Hale 
Hamilton and Alice Joyce in “Her 
Friend the King” opens Sunday. 
In Oakland at Duffy’s Dufwin 
Kolb and Dill opened big in 
“Give and Take,” doing $5600. 

“Bambina,” which opened nicely 
the week previous at the Curran, 
closed at the end of its second 
week preparatory to jumping into 
Los Angeles where it opens. Sec- 
ond and final week’s figures were 
$14,000. House dark until Feb. 3 
when “Oh Susanna” in. Geary 
also dark, as is the Capitol. 

There was much legal hubbub 
concerning “Bad Babies” at the 
Capitol. First week of this show 
opened lightly to $8000 and by the 
end of the second week there was 
nobody around the house to give 
a figure on the business. 

Columbia still holds the Colum- 
bia Opera Co. doing good business. 
Sid Goldtree opens “The Peep- 
hole” at his Green Street Theatre 
Jan. 29 and will feature a mid- 
night matinee every Saturday in 
addition to regular performances. 

CHEVALIER AT SHOW 


SAN FRANCISCO, Jan. 29.— 
Preceded by anextravagant fanfare 
of publicity, local motor dealers 
open their annual auto show at 
the Civic Auditorium February 1 
for one week. Under an agree- 
ment with Paramount the motor 
men have borrowed Maurice Chev- 
alier who is nicking them $18,000 
for a week of personal appear- 
ances. Harry Elliott is handling 
advertising and publicity for the 
show'. 


OPEN AT LIDO 


SAN FRANCISCO, Jan. 29.— 
The Big Three, vocal trio composed 
of Harry Morton, Heine Klotz 
and Ron Jonson, opens an indefi- 
nite engagement at the Lido . Cafe 
this week. 


INVESTIGATE THIS NEW PROCESS! 

We Make 

PHONOGRAPHIC RECORDS 


OF YOUR OWN TALENT 


602 Kress Bldg. 
Phone Kearney 5083 


935 Market 
San Francisco 


HOTEL GOVERNOR 

TURK AT JONES 

SAN FRANCISCO 

THE HOME OF ALL THEATRICAL PEOPLE 
PLAYING SAN FRANCISCO 
SPECIAL RATES TO PROFESSIONALS 
JACK WOLFENDEN, Prop. FRANK RATCHFORD, Mgr. 


S, E. IS CANDIDATE 
FOR ‘HUE' MEDAL 


SAN FRANCISCO, Jan. 29.— 
Once internationally noted for its 
liberality and broad - mindedness, 
San Francisco, by virtually raid- 
ing “Bad Babies” out of town, 
seems heading for a reversal of 
its former reputation. After Po- 
lice Judge Sylvain Lazarus had 
acquitted the cast and producers 
on charge of presenting an im- 
moral and indecent performance, 
civic virtue, impersonated by Capt. 
Arthur D. Layne and the grand 
jury reared up on their hind legs 
and formally requested the show 
to leave town. 

After constant harassing by 
some authorities, Producer Lee 
Armes gave up in disgust this 
week. Equity got on the job by 
long distance phone at 11 p. m. 
Saturday night and made arrange- 
ments to ship the majority of his 
cast back to Los Angeles where 
the show was originally staged a 
number of weeks ago and also 
ran into legal tangles. 

FILMS FOR CHARITY 


SAN FRANCISCO, Jan. 29.— 
During 1929 the local Film Board 
of Trade, through its members, 
supplied gratis film to approxi- 
mately 30 charitable institutions, it 
was revealed in the annual report 
recently issued to Rowena Foley, 
secretary. There were about 5,- 
121,000 feet of film in the entire 
lot. 


ABE BLOOM BACK 


SAN FRANCISCO, Jan. 30.— 
Abe Bloom, local representative 
for Irving Berlin, Inc., has re- 
turned from a two-week tour of 
the Northwest territory in the 
interests of his firm. 


NEW CHORUS OPENS 


SAN FRANCISC, Jan. 30.— 
In addition to her regular lineup 
of sixteen girls at the Fox El 
Capitan here, Peggy O’Neill has 
a second line alternating between 
the Wilson in Fresno and the 
California in San Jose. New 
chorus opened Monday in Fresno 
for four days and opens Friday in 
San Jose for the balance of the 
week. 

CIRCUS TO OPEN 


SAN FRANCISCO, Jan. 30.— 
The Al. G. Barnes circus is slated 
to open its 1930 season March 
10. Staff for the show includes 
Ben Austin, advance; Ed F. Max- 
well, contracting agent; R. C. 
Morgan, car manager Allen Les- 
ter, press agent; Cliff McDougal, 
contracting p.a. and Jack Austin, 
auto manager. 


‘HOT FOR PARIS’ OPENS BIG TO 
APPROXIMATE $50,000 GROSS 

SAN FRANCISCO, Jan. 29. — Wagnon’s Embassy tapped the bell 
A run of nice weather helped+with a figure of $15,000 for its 


boost picture show shop receipts 
during the past week with the 
Fox benefiting most by the change. 
Fox’s “Hot For Paris” with Vic 
McLaglen and Fifi D’Orsay and 
Fanchon and Marco’s “Internation- 
al Idea,” master-of-ceremonied by 
Walt Roesner, drew in approxi- 
mately $50,000. Present show has 
Marion Davies in “Not So Dumb” 
and the “Desert Idea.” 

“Sunny Side Up” in its third 
stanza at Loew’s Warfield okay 
at $17,000. One more week and 
then “Hallelujah” in for a short 
stay. 

Paramount’s “Lady Lies” with 
Ruth Chatterton at Publix’s Gran- 
ada did $21,000, nice word-of- 
mouth helping. “Kibitzer” there 
now. At Publix’s California, sec- 
ond week of “Sally” did $17,500. 
Sixth week of Chevalier in “Love 
Parade” at the St. Francis okay 
at $9000. House bringing in Lil- 
lian Roth for personal appearances 
next week. 

Second week of U’s “Broadway” 
at the Orpheum average at $10,- 
000. Radio’s “Love Comes Along” 
holding the screen now, and “Hit 
the Deck” set for next week. 
Warners’ “Show of Shows” at 


JACK DELANEY’S 

DANCE ORCHESTRA 
In Its Second Year at 

ALABAM CAFE 
OAKLAND 


THE NEW-pJSENSATION ! 
“JUST ONE— 
THAT’S ALL” 

A Comedy Mock Ballad 

AMERICAN MUSIC CO. 

kkess bldg., san francisco 


first seven days and still there. 
The Marion Davies with "Skinner 
Steps Out” did $8500 and Tif- 
fany’s “Peacock Alley” now in. 

Casino excellent with “South 
Sea Rose” doing a near record of 
$12,000 aided by a stage show. 
“Night Ride,” looks big now. 

NEW NUMBER 

SAN FRANCISCO, Jan. 30.— 
A number “When I Take You 
Home” has been written by An- 
son Weeks, orchestra leader at 
the Mark Hopkins Hotel, and 
Larry Yoell. The tune, to be pub- 
lished by Lloyd Campbell, is 
played as a closing number each 
night by Weeks. 

TO REOPEN STRAND 


SAN FRANCISCO, Jan. 30.— 
National Theatres will reopen the 
Strand in Modesto on Feb. 15. 
The house has been closed since 
March. 


IS DOORMAN 

SAN FRANCISCO, Jan. 29.— 
J. W. Roscoe is stage doorman at 
Ackerman and Harris’ Casino 
Theatre. 


INVEST 

Your Earnings Wisely 
For Conservative Investment 
Consult 

Wm. J. Kreuz 

De Fremery & Co. 

947 Russ Bldg. 

San Francisco 
Phone Sutter 3300 


REMOVAL NOTICE 

THEO. M. NEWMAN’S 

THEATRE DRAPERY STUDIO 

NOW LOCATED ON THE SPACIOUS GROUND FLOOR 
283 GOLDEN GATE AVE. SAN FRANCISCO 

Phone: Market 1830 


STAGE CURTAINS — THEATRE DRAPERIES — LOBBY AND 
STAIR ROPES — PIANO AND ORGAN COVERS —GROUND 
CLOTHS — PIANO CARRIAGES — COMPLETE COUNTER- 
WEIGHT SYSTEMS INSTALLED 


LOOK THESE ENGAGEMENTS OVER 


16 WEEKS, PANTAGES THEATRE, S. F. 

12 WEEKS, SILVER SLIPPER CAFE, S. F. 


16 WEEKS, CAFE MARQUARD, S. F. 

2 WEEKS, ORPHEUM, With Buss McClelland 


ALL HELD BY 


JIMMIE BIRR 


‘ACE OF SONGS’ 


NOW ON INDEFINITE ENGAGEMENT AT THE 

FOX EL CAPITAN - - - SAN FRANCISCO 

With Appreciation to JAY BROWER, PEGGY O’NEILL, MEL HERTZ and DAN McLEAN 


SCENERY BY MARTIN STUDIOS 


HOLLYWOOD, CALIFORNIA 



PAGE TWELVE 


INSIDE FACTS OF STAGE AND SCREEN 


SATURDAY, FEB. 1, 1930 



Facts? Echoes From Melody L,and 



By JACK B. TENNEY 

The musical tramp differs from 
the wandering troubadour, inas- 
far as the day of the troubadour 
is passed and a new terminology 
is in order. The musical tramp, 
however, may ; be a development, 
or, at least a direct descendant 
of the celebrated minstrels who 
brightened the festive boards of 
feudal barons. I do not know 
whether to feel sorry for him or 
to be keenly exasperated at him. 
At times I am moved by both 
emotions. . . . He is here today 
. . . gone tomorrow. He is us- 
ually a good salesman and has 
talent, but he is a gypsy. 

Somehow the musical tramp 
misses the “breaks” in the gilded 
Temples of Music . . . and many 
I’ve known might well have scin- 
tillated there. For some reason 
they always get lost just around 
the corner from Broadway and 
spend the rest of their days in 
aimless wanderings. . . . Mean- 
time they pipe their tunes and 
sing their songs, travelling on in 
pursuit of elusive Fortune . . . 
They are quite as careless with 
Dame Fortune as the fickle god- 
dess is with them. . . . The first 
money in weeks . . . easy come, 
easy go. 

They are usually good fellows 
and good companions, these mu- 
sical tramps, and not infrequent- 
ly, excellent musicians. But they 
can’t remain long in one place. 
. . . Distant fields appear so much 
greener. Something calls and they 
make haste to answer. ... No- 
madism is still strong in their 
blood. . . . They’ll probably have 
a devil of a time in heaven. 

* * * 

Max Bradfield, M. C., is prov- 
ing popular at the Wisconsin The- 
atre in Milwaukee. We wonder 
how Max is enjoying the ice and 
snow. 

* * * 

Reg Code opened recently at 
the Athens Athletic Club in Oak- 
land, after a very successful year 
at Tait’s-at-the-Beach in San 
Francisco, playing to excellent 
business. (Coakley followed Reg 
Code in to the Beach spot.) The 
orchestra has been enthusiastic- 
ally received and is going big. 

* * * 

“Slim” Martin, Master of Cere- 
monies and the trombone, has 
been transferred from the Col- 
orado Theatre in Pasadena to the 
Boulevard Theatre in Los An- 
geles. They still miss Slim in 
Long Beach and now they’ll miss 
him in Pasadena. 

* * * 

The passing of Art Hickman 


AT LIBERTY * 
DICK BURNS 

Fast drummer; fine outfit; Vibra- 
phone. Read anything. Union. Age 
35. All requirements Xylophone solo- 
ist with large rep. of solos. Dance or 
Hotel. All answered. Go anywhere. 
Care of Inside Facts, 801 Warner 
Brothers’ Downtown Bldg., Los Ange- 
les, Calif. 


leaves a catch in the throat of 

rhythm musicians. He was an 
originator and an inspiration to 

most of the early devotees of jazz 
and set the first standards for the 
modern dance orchestra. He leaves 
considerably more than footsteps 
upon the historical sands of mu- 
sic. His influence will be felt 
in every baton that marks a dis- 
tinct rhythm. Art Hickman is 

gone, but what he created lives on. 

* * * 

The American Locomjotive 
Works have gone into the saxa- 
phone manufacturing business. To 
start with, they have produced 
the world’s largest saxaphone. It 
stands six feet and seven inches 
in its stocking feet and takes a 
reed thirteen-sixteenths of an inch 
at the lip. The rod operating the 
low C sharp key is said to have 
a length of thirty-nine inches. The 
rod for the side C key is thirty- 
seven and one-half inches long. 
The pitch is not mentioned, but 
it is reported that the tone is 
“sonorous.” We know quite a few 
saxaphone players who would en- 
joy owning one of these instru- 
ments, inasmuch as the present 
size saxes are entirely to modest 
and can barely be heard above 
the other instruments in the or 
chestra. 

* * * 

Joey Starr and his Musical 
Stars, _ an eight-piece orchestra, 
open in the Rendezvous Ballroom, 
Mesa, Ariz., Saturday, February 
8, replacing the Rendezvous Com- 
manders who have had a success- 
ful run since last September. The 
personnel of the new band is 
“Stew” Aspin, reeds; Ted Wells, 
reeds; Bill Macauley, banjo and 
violin; Gene “Tiny” Hardesty, 
trombone; Ralph Menard, piano; 
M. A. Bradley, hass, violin and 
banjo, and Joey Starr, drums and 
leader. 



ON “REVELS” 


_ Louis Gottschalk has been 
signed by Radio Pictures to as- 
sist Victor Baravalle, musical di- 
rector, on musical numbers for 
“Radio Revels.” Gottschalk has 
been in Hollywood 10 years and 
has worked on a number of high- 
ly successful pictures, among them 
“Broken Blossoms,” for which he 
arranged the musical score. 

G. S. M. HERE 


Billy Weimann, general sales 
manager for E. B. Marks Music 
Company, arrived in town for a 
few days this week. Weimann is 
making a general tour of the 
country. 

NEW WITMARK OFFICE 

.Witmark, Inc., music publishers, 
will open their new offices in War- 
ner Brothers Hollywood Build- 
ing Monday, Feb. 3. There will 
be no gala opening, but all the 
theatrical profession is invited to 
attend during the day. 


“AT THE END OF THE ROAD” ========= 

It’s Always “Open House” in the 
SAN FRANCISCO OFFICE OF 

IRVING BERLIN, Inc. 

Again Managed by 

ABE BLOOM 

300 Kress Bldg. 935 Market 

■■ “I’M FOLLOWING YOU” 


WILL, PRIOR 

CONDUCTOR 

NEW STATE THEATRE. SYDNEY. AUSTRALIA 


TED HENKEL 


MUSICAL 

CONDUCTOR 


PRESENTATION 

DIRECTOR 


and 

CIVIC THEATRE 

Auckland, New Zealand 

- : - Stage Band of 20 


Pit Orchestra of 30 


LOS ANGELES 

Robbins’ “Chant of the Jungle,” 
themie from M-G-M’s “Untamed,” 
continued to lead the song sales in 
town during the past week, with 
their “Should I?” continuing to 
show an increase. 

The ten best sellers were; 

1. “Chant of the Jungle,” — 
Robbins. 

2. “To Be Forgotten” — Berlin. 

3. “I’m Following You” — Ber- 
lin.. 

4. “Should I ?”— Robbins. 

5. “Love, Your Spell Is Every- 
where” — Berlin. 

6. “Love Me” — Feist. 

7. “A Year From Today” — Ber- 
lin. 

8. “What Do I Care?”- — Sha- 
piro, Bernstein. 

9. “That Wonderful Something 
Called Love” — Robbins. 

10. “Singing In the Bathtub” — 
Witmark. 

Recordings 

1. “Chant of the Jungle” — All 
recordings. 

2. “Should I?” — Paul Whiteman 
(Columbia). 

3. “I’m Following You” — Paul 
Specht (Columbia). 

4. “Singing In the Bathtub”— 
Ben Bernie (Brunswick). 

5. “Love, Your Spell Is Every- 
where” — All recordings. 

6. “That Wonderful Something 
Called Love” — Roy Ingraham 
(Brunswick). 

7. “Little By Little” — Guy Lom- 
bardo (Columbia). 

8. “Your Fate Is In My Hands” 
— Paul Whiteman (Columbia). 

9. “What Do I Care”— All re- 
cordings. 

10. “You’re Always In My 
Arms” — Bebe Daniels (Victor). 

SAN FRANCISCO 

“When the Sun Goes Down” 
and “Chant of the Jungle” had the 
biggest sales increases of the week, 
other tunes holding quite steadily 
to their previous pace. 

Leaders are: 

1. Aren’t We All?”- — DeSylva, 
Brown and Henderson. 

2. Sunny Side Up” — DeSylva, 
Brown and Henderson. 

3. “Chant of the Jungle” — Rob- 
bins. 

4. “Talking Picture” — DeSylva, 
Brown and Henderson. 

5. “I’m Following You” — Ber- 
lin. 

6. “When the Sun Goes Down” 
— Lloyd Campbell. 

7. “Singing In the Bathtub”— 
Witmark. 

8. “Your Fate Is In My Hands” 
Santly Bros. 

9. “Turn On the Heat”— De- 
Sylva, Brown and Henderson. 

10. “You’re Always In My 
Arms” — Leo Feist. 

HAS NEW NUMBER 

LONG BEACH, Cal., Jan. 30.— 
George Broa.dbent, popular organ- 
ist and soloist for the Fox-Wbst 
Coast Theatre, has written a song 
called “Sweetheart Mine.” The 
number was featured last week at 
the local house by Herb Kern 
and his orchestra, with Broadbent 
on the Wurlitzer. 

ORGANISTS SHIFTED 




she mis s. o:s 


SEATTLE, Jan. 30. — Continuing 
their struggle with John Dariz, lo- 
cal non-union theatre magnate, 
Local 154, Operators’ Union, re- 
port progress in their efforts to 
enlighten the public on the sit- 
uation. 

The State of Washington Su- 
preme Court has recently decided 
in Danz’ favor on the suit to for- 
bid pickets patrolling the sidewalks 
near the Columbia and Winter 
Garden Theatres, which Danz ac- 
quired from Universal last spring. 
Danz has not been so successful in 
keeping the sign carriers from the 
walks adjacent to the Colonial 
and Capitol Theatres, the men be- 
ing permitted to walk a heat pro- 
viding they do not come within 
100 feet of either entrance of either 
theatre. 

James McNabb, business agent 
of the Operators, and Jay G. 
Brown, business agent of the local 
theatrical federation, firmly be- 
lieve that the concerted effort of 
organized labor is having its ef- 
fect on Danz’ boxoffices. Opinion 
around town among the trade and 
public is divided on this situation, 
with the majority possibly agree- 
ing that, should Danz cease his 
seven-year battle with the labor 
unions, his b. o.’s would take a 
nice spurt. 

Under existing conditions at the 
Danz houses, all men work seven- 
day weeks and shifts that average 
about 20 per cent more time than 
the union allows, with the pay 
check declared to take an even 
greater per cent cut. 

GREEN AND STEPT SELL 
PUBLISHING BUSINESS 


SAN FRANCISCO, Jan. 29.— 
In a shifting of Fox West Coast 
organists, C. Sharpe Minor comes 
into Loew’s Warfield soon from 
San Diego. He will be featured 
in daily concerts. Jamie Erickson 
moves from the Fox Senator in 
Sacramento to the California in 
San Diego, with no definite suc- 
cessor named for the Sacramento 
job. 

TO PLAY CRUISES 


SAN FRANCISCO, Jan. 29.— 
Lou Miller and his band have 
been signed for the S. S. Dorothy 
Alexander’s fortnightly cruises to 
Mexico the first of which begins 
February 2. Raquel Torres, pic- 
ture player, will act as hostess. 
Miller’s organization formerly was 
at Tahoe Tavern and the Apollo 
Cafe. 

QUILLAN TO START 


Eddie Quillan was due to get 
into production this week on his 
next for Pathe, an original by 
Tay Garnett titled “Great Guns.” 
Jimmie Gleason and Garnett did 
the dialogue and the latter will 
direct. It is a western comedy, 
with Eddie Quillan being the main 
laugh-getter in the role of a dude 
who goes West to -be a cowboy. 


Green and Stept. music pub- 
lishers, sold out their interests 
this week to De Sylva, Brown 
and Henderson. Billy Burton, who 
was local representative for Green 
and Stept, is out, but no other 
changes have been announced. 

ARNHEIM ON AIR 

Gus Arnheim, whose jazz band 
was a former favorite in Los An- 
geles, goes on the air regularly 
beginning next week over KFWB. 

MILTON CHANTING 


During the three-week run of 
“The Love Parade,” Milton Charles 
is using Robbins’ “Chant of the 
Jungle” as his organ solo. 

BIG STAGE NEARLY DONE 

Radio Pictures’ big new sound 
stage, the largest in existence, will 
be in operation within the next 
thirty days. The building is 
500x150 feet on the ground and 
five stories high. Four motion 
picture companies can work there 
at one time. 



GAYLORD CARTER 
UNITED ARTISTS 

LOS ANGELES 
(Reviewed Jan. 26) 

Gaylord Carter, in as the new 
featured organist after two years 
as relief organist at the Paramount 
Theatre, again demonstrated that 
he is a real student of the organ. 

He presented the numbers from 
“The Love Parade,” closing with 
accompaniment to Jeanette Mc- 
Donald’s record of “Dream Lover.” 
Although buried in the pit till 
now, he showed ability to meet 
an audience with poise and per- 
sonality, and sold himself for good 
returns. 

Carter looks set for a good run. 

Woody. 





E 

AGAINST IB 


SAN FRANCISCO, Jan. 29.— 
After waiting several weeks for 
the American Society of Authors 
and_ Composers to take action 
against the sale of a bootleg mu- 
sic , sheet called “Songland Her- 
ald” on San Francisco streets, lo- 
cal music representatives, acting 
upon authority of their eastern of- 
fices, are proceeding legally to 
halt the peddling. 

An injunction is being sought in 
local courts to prohibit sale of the 
sheets, music men claiming it to 
be a violation of the copyright 
law. Sheet music sales fn stores 
here, they claim, has dropped off 
to a considerable degree as a re- 
sult of this new and heavy com- 
petition. 

EGGERT DEAD IN CRASH 


- Jimmie Eggert, well known 
around the music offices in Chi- 
cago, . was instantly killed this 
week in an airplane crash at Kan- 
sas City. Eggert was making a 
business trip from Wichita to 

Kansas City when the plane 

crashed just before making its 

landing. Eggert was Chicago of- 

fice manager for the firm of Ager, 
Yellen and Bornstein, music' pub- 
lishers. 

PLUGGING IN S. F. 


SAN FRANCISCO, Jan. 30.— 
Tubby Garron representing Sant- 
ly Bros., and Bobby Gross repre- 
senting Remick, are in town this 
week plugging their firm num- 
bers. 


IT’S A HIT! 

“I MISS YOU” 

(When the Day Is Done) 

Slow Fox Trot 

AMERICAN MUSIC CO. 

KEESS BLDG., SAN FEANCISCO 


OWEN 

FALLON 


AND HIS 


CALIFORNIANS 

NOW IN SECOND 
YEAR 

AT 

WILSON'S 
BALLROOM 

(Formerly Cinderella Roof) 

LOS ANGELES, CALIF. 

Hear Our Latest Recordings 
“Shanghai Rose” and “Till I Kissed You” 
Phone Your Favorite Radio Station 
During the Recording Periods 



SATURDAY, FEB. 1, 1930 


INSIDE FACTS OF STAGE AND SCREEN 


PAGE THIRTEEN' 



REVIEWS 

COMMENT 

MADIOLAJVD 

By FRED YEATES 

CHATTER 

NEWS 


BIS POPULARITY 
FOR FILM PEOPLE 


That the nation likes to listen 
to film people is proven by the 
tremendous audience attracted by 
the “Voices of Filmland’’ origi- 
nating in Hollywood studios every 
Monday and released over the 
Columbia network. It is said to 
be the biggest attraction that has 
ever been produced on the Paci- 
fic Coast for continent-wide air 
consumption. 

The Don Lee Filmland Or- 
chestra under Raymond Paige, 
and Earl Burtnett’s dance band 
and vocal trio furnish the musical 

setting. 

Billboard advertising all over 
the country directed initial atten- 
tion to the feature, and it is stated 
that this is the first national ad- 
vertising campaign ever launched 
in which radio has been the cen- 
tral attraction instead of a sup- 
plementary advertising stunt. 

He’s Got a 
FanLikeNo 
Other Could Be 


SAN FRANCISCO, Jan. 29.— 
There have been fan letters and 
fan letters but the brass medal for 
the strangest one goes to Eddie 
Holden who, during working hours 
is “Frank Watanabe” over KFRC 
of the , Don Lee and Columbia 
chain. 

In Eddie’s mail the other day 
there came a letter signed by 
“Midnight” who, according to the 
letter, is a jet black dog owned 
by a local listener-in. 

Every Tuesday, Thursday and 
Saturday at 10 p. m. when Wa- 
tanabe comes on the air, “Mid- 
night” stands alert before the 
loudspeaker waiting for his favor- 
ite. When Watanabe’s Japanese 
brogue is heard the dog pricks up 
his ears, wags his tail and listens 
intently. 

And no other radio entertainer 
will do. 


MIKE FASHION SHOW 


Hollywood film fashions are to 
be broadcast every Wednesday 
evening over KHJ, and are to be 
described from actual gowns mod- 
elled in the same studio. Public 
is invited to the studio for an eye- 
full if an earfull is not enough. 


MERRYMAKERS SOLD 


“The Merrymakers,” hour of va- 
riety originated and developed by 
the KHJ staff as an experiment, 
has been sold to a gasoline com- 
pany and is set as a weekly Pacific 
Coast broadcast for a year. 


HERB 

KERN 

Organist- Master of Ceremonies 

FOX WEST COAST 
Long Beach, Calif, 


WM. (Billy) KNOX 

SOLO ORGANIST 
Fox Oakland Theatre 

. — J> 


FRANK 

HIPSLEY 

And His 

Personality Band 
Balconades Ballroom 
San Francisco 


Jay 

drower 

Master-of-Ceremonies 

FOX EL CAPITAN 

San Francisco 


Pickups & 
Viewpoint 

Broadcast executives are invited 
to study our cross-section of radio- 
land this week, taken last Satur- 
day afternoon. It provides food 
for a lot of thought on the part 
of those who are really anxious to 
increase their audiences. Do the 
programs invite the attention of 
workers who may want to sit 
around the house on their Satur- 
day afternoon holiday? Are they 
of a quality to sell advertisers on 
the attention-holding potency of 
radio? Would you listen to them 
yourselves? 

One might go on asking ques- 
tions, but the answer would be 
the same in ev.ery case. And no- 
body needs to be told what that 
answer is. 

* * * 

The Paramount - Publix hour 
broadcast over the Columbia net- 
work every Saturday night is noth- 
ing but a stage revue, using the 
stage and pit talent of the Para- 
mount Theatre in New York, and 
very little is done to promte the 
picture angle or the all-talk policy 
of the Publix houses. It makes 
one wonder if there is anything in 
the idea that the broadcast is used 
as a thermometer to determine just 
how much the public cares for that 
kind of entertainment, conclusions 
to be used in deciding whether or 
not to go heavier on stage shows 
in their theatres. 

* * * 

Lew Cody spilled himself all 
over the ether on last week’s M- 
G-M hour, reciting the poem 
“Fleurette.” His voice is not beau- 
tiful in quality, but he certainly 
went heavy on the histrionics. 

* * * 

Lionel Barrymore broadcast an 
appeal for a ten-year-old boy with 
a perfect English accent for a role 
in a Dickens picture, “Oliver 
Twist,” now casting, but so far 
the right one has not appeared. 
There are millions of actors in 
Hollywood, except the ones they 
want. 

* * st 

Oscar Strauss arrived in New 
York Sunday morning and was 
shoved on the NBC program of 
the Atwater Kent Co. that even- 
ing. His remarks were interest- 
ing. He said he had come to this 
country to make talking pictures 
and was happy to appear on the 
radio, as they were practically the 
same thing, many of them being 
glad to appear on radio programs 
for the mike experience, and many 
radio artists have talking pictures 
in the back of their minds. 

* * * 

The Philco hour of last Thurs- 
day featured Belle Baker. Pier 
voice miked well, especially when 
she talked her lyrics. She sang 
“Old-Fashioned Lady” and “Have 
a Little Faith In Me,” said she 
just loved her radio audience, and 
plugged for her picture “The Song 
of Love.” But it was stage stuff 
and had little appeal for listeners 
to whom her name meant nothing. 


AN EGOTIST 

is a person who cannot 
make his “I’s” behave. I 
am no egotist but never- 
theless insist that my 
services on a picture are 
a definite economy, 
whether they be utilized 
on plot construction, 
comedy relief or dia- 
logue. 


JAMES MADISON 

(An Author and a Showman) 
465 South Detroit St. 

Los Angeles 
(Phone ORegon 9407) 



“Please tell the world we need 
no more uke players, pianists, so- 
pranos, tenors or juveniles,” says 
Florence Israel, program arranger 
for KFWB, “but we do want 
something unusual. 

“We give auditions every Thurs- 
day afternoon from two to four, 
putting them on our monitor sys- 
tem, and no previous appoint- 
ments are necessary. Performers 
who have something novel will be 
heartily welcomed.” 


IS MUSICAL DIRECTOR 


LONG BEACH, Cal., Jan. 30.— 
Dick Dixon, formerly organist at 
the Capitol Theatre, has been ap- 
pointed musical director of KGER 
along with being featured daily on 
the studio organ. Dick has se- 
cured several musical combina- 
tions and soloists for the air and 
if you should be an artist or want ] 
radio work get in touch with Dick 
Dixon. He’s looking for talent. 

INVENTS BEAT SCRIBES 


According to technicians at KFI 
and KECA, it is a waste of time 
for control men to read technical 
publications. Developments in im- 
provements and new gadgets come 
so fast, they say, that publications 
cannot keep up with them, and 
they believe it will be five years 
before they can hope to cover the 
field and catch up. 


BIG DOUGH IN KIDS 


Baron Keyes, who broadcasts a 
children’s program from KFI daily, 
is reported about to sign a new 
contract with his sponsor at a sal- 
ary of $25,000 a year. 

On The Air 
Happenings 

SAN FRANCISCO, Jan. 29.— 
KFRC has many outstanding mike 
artists and one of its superior or- 
ganizations is the Modern Melo- 
dists, an excellent musical group 
directed by Mahlon Merrick. In 
their few short months of exist- 
ence this combination has built 
up nicely with its symphonic ar- 
rangements of popular hits. And 
while it hardly seems enough, the 
organization has among its mem- 
bers seven arrangers, all of whom 
contribute to the group. 

Personnel includes Merrick, di- 
rector; Walter Kelsey, violin and 
voice; A1 Zohn, trumpet; Richard 
McAffery, trumpet; Joe Zohn, 
trombone; Earl Eastman, Mickey 
Gillette and Meriam Worthington, 
reeds; Ray Jarnigan, piano; Tony 
Freeman, bass; Paul Worthington, 
banjo, and Bill Ames, drums. 

* * * 

To its daily schedule N. B. C. 
has added “Meet the Folks,” a 
program that is an innovation in 
radio entertainment. Through KGO 
listeners-in are introduced to mem- 
bers of the artist staff daily ex- 
cept Sunday from 9 to 9:30, with 
Madonna Todd, of the N. B. C. 
publicity department, interviewing 
the artists. 

* * * 

In a short time Cotton Bond 
has risen from the rank of a new- 
comer to KFRC to a valuable 
member of the artists’ staff, his 
latest achievement coming this 
week when the Custo company se- 
lected him for their programs 
over that station. Bond, with an 
assisting group of artists, will be 
heard Friday afternoons between 
5:30 and 6. 

* * * 

Oh, Fred Yeates! You said 
something on your page last week 
about believing Doby and Lou to 
be in San Francisco. Well, you 
were right. They blew in from 
Seattle recently and have been do- 
ing some nice work at KjFRC. 

* * * 

Max Dolin, musical director on 
the coast for National Broadcast- 
ing Co., is featuring on his pro- 
grams a new instrument, the 
Theremin, played by simply mov- 
ing the hands in front of two 
metal antennae protruding from a 
wooden cabinet. One of these 
antennae controls tone, the other, 
volume. 


Program 

Reviews 

CROSS-SECTIONING 

RADIOLAND 

THUMBNAIL REVIEWS 
LOS ANGELES 

January 25 

KMIC (12:50 p. m.) Hoarse 
voiced man answering questions 
about the future and soliciting $2 
for forecast. Followed by dance 
record program. 

KGER (.1:10 p. m.) Dance rec- 
ords. 

KFOX (1:30 p. m.) Cheerio 
Boys. This duo good entertain- 
ers of pop variety. Can sell a 
song. Plugging furniture store. 
Followed by Tom Mitchell sing- 
ing pop numbers. He plugs a 
healing institute and is heard over 
several stations. Is a consonant 
singer. 

KGFJ (2:00 p. m.) Dance mu- 
sic remote from the Orange Grove 
Cafe, Carol Londoner’s Orchestra. 
Announcements plug night show. 

KNX (2:30 p. m.) Regular Sat- 
urday afternoon feature, broadcast- 
ing complete opera from records, 
Eddie Albright telling the story 
between numbers. “Die Walkure” 
this time; great entertainment and 
has big audience. Always seem 
to be noises from this station, 
sometimes nerve-wracking. 

KFVD (4:45 p. m.) Dance rec- 
ords. Plugging radio store. 

KFWB (4:50 p. m.) Charlie 
Davis singing pop songs, uke ac- 
companiment. Even if the voice 
js not of conspicuous quality his 
words can be heard; not unpleas- 
ing. Ad plug for a gland food. 
Another ad plug for restaurant. 
Boswell Sisters, harmonizers. Girl 
carrying melody too strident, oth- 
ers can hardly be heard. One 
song, then three more ad plugs, 
one for furniture store, one for 
“Maker of successful men and wo- 
men,” then one for a finance com- 
pany selling repossessed cars. 
Rustling of announcer’s copy can 
be plainly heard. 

KFQZ (5:05 p. m. A woman 
interpreting vibrations and fore- 
casting events for inquiriers. Or- 
gan music background. 

KELW (5:15 p. m.-) Man talk- 
ing through his nose about as- 
trology, answering questions and 
selling an astronomical hour clock. 
Also bawling out what he called 
“hooey artists with Oriental 
names.” 

KMTR (5:30 p. m.) Announcer 
telling of ginger ale label contest, 
then plugging fried chicken place. 
Record, “Who,” then ad plug 
about blankets and another ad 
about free airplane rides. 

KECA (5:45 p. m.) “Mister” 
Williams in piano selections, 
“Don’t Want Your Kisses,” “Year 
From Today,” “Song I Love” and 
“Aren’t We All?” Good average, 
and sounded better than with a 
poor voice. If you like it at this 
time of day it takes the place of 
daughter playing in the parlor 
while mamma gets supper. 

KHJ (6 p. m.) “Nit-Wits” pro- 
gram over CBS from New York. 
Thirty minutes of goofy, burlesque 
by characters known as Gabriel, 


WEEKLY FROLIC 10 
BE KFWB FEATURE 


A weekly radio frolic is to be 
featured by KFWB in the near 
future. 

The Jambonees, Merrymakers, 
Lion Tamers, and so on have 
rushed into enormous popularity 
with radio listeners, and the War- 
ner station is the newest to go 
after their share of this audience. 

The program is to include gags, 
skits and music, planned to a 
continuity, and a contest will be 
held for a suitable name, with 
cash prizes as an inducement. 


Gets Short 
History of 
These U. S.s 

Taking his cue from Calvin 
Coolidge’s assignment to write a 
history of the United States in 
500 words, Jose Rodriguez has 
asked KFI listeners to try their 
hands at the pastime. 

The first received left 486 words 
unused. Grafton C. Allen, of Los 
Angeles, contributed th’e follow- 
ing: 

“Conceived in rebellion; pre- 
served by the brotherhood of 
man; destroyed by abuse of pow- 
er.” 

Which does not say much for 
the brotherhood of man. 


Maurice Chevalier is billed for 
radio appearance over the Don 
Lee chain, February 2, 7:30 to 
8:30 p. m. 


Aphrodite-Godiva, Lord Ashcart, 
Mocha and Madame Odle-de-Pok- 
er, with Professor Succotash m. 
c.’ing. Subjects treated, “Making 
the Arm More Attractiv e,” 
“Three Musketeers” and “The 
Theatre in 1950.” Just goofy and 
too exaggerated to be humorous 
at first hearing; like a comic strip, 
something to be followed from 
week to week. Ad plug was sell- 
ing radio artists for personal ap- 
pearances. 

KFI (6:30 p. m.) Walter Dam- 
rosch and Orchestra on NBC from 
N. Y. Up to usual high standard, 
classic music. Damrosch’s com- 
ments always most interesting and 
well presented. 


TUNE IN ON 

DUD 

WILLIAMSON 

MASTER OF CEREMONIES 
and STAFF ARTIST 

KYA SAN FRANCISCO 


RUSS 

COLLER 

And His 

CELLAR SHAKERS 
Radio Station 
KFWB 


FOX WEST COAST THEATRES 

PRESENT 

PETER BRESCIA 

AND HIS 

CONCERT ORCHESTRA 

FOX T. & D. THEATRE 

OAKLAND, CALIF. 


WALTER KRAUSGRILL 

AND HIS MUSIC 

EL PATIO BALLROOM MARKET AT VAN NESS 

SAN FRANCISCO 


PETER PAUL LYONS 

AND HIS CONCERT ORCHESTRA 
LOEW’S WARFIELD SAN FRANCISCO 



PAGE FOURTEEN 


INSIDE FACTS OF STAGE AND SCREEN 


SATURDAY, FEB. 1, 1930 


Vaudeville and ^Presentations 


R-K-0 ORPHEUM 

SEATTLE 
(Reviewed Jan. 25) 

Here is a pip of an all-round 
vaudeville bill, with the next-to- 
shut act sharing honors with the 
opener for the heavy hand music 
that each act grabbed off at the 
opening show. 

The Alexander Sisters, Ann, 
Gertrude and Rose, started things 
in the opening spot. Ann and 
Gertrude did their Apache and 
Russian numbers in whirlwind 
style with Rose clicking on violin 
and solo dance work. The trio 
opened and closed w-ith as neat a 
dance offering that’s been seen 
here for a little while. The act 
has improved considerably since 
playing Pan and merits a better 
spot. 

Ken Christy, assisted by Bar- 
bara Bronell, Helen Huntington 
and an unbilled bell-hop, offered 
a domestic comedy skit that had 
plenty of laughs to it. They threw 
in a little hoofing that landed 
nicely. 

Healey and Cross, in the trey 
spot, knocked ’em over with their 
harmony songs, with Healy at the 
piano. Here is a sweet musical 
bit, and the boys can hold their 
places with the rest of ’em. 

The next-to-shut act had Jesse 
Block and Eve Sully billed. Due 
to the fact that the former’s moth- 
er died a few days ago, Allen 
Cross of the previous act stepped 
to the breach and with A1 Boas- 
berg’s material and the heavy as- 
sistance of Eve Sully, brought out 
belly-laughs in rapid succession. 
Boasberg can take a bow together 
with the clever pair, for this house 
hasn’t laughed as much since Ol- 
sen and Johnson were here and in 
some cases more. Put this one in 
next-to-shut any place. 

Howard’s Shetland ponies and 
dogs closed the bill in fine style. 

Tinj' Burnett and his Orchestra, 


with the able assistance of Myrtle 
Strong at the organ, preceded the 
vaude with selections from the 
next opus, “Hit the Deck.” This 
gang of syncopaters got their usual 
big hand. 

Bebe Daniels’ “Love Comes 
Along” was the opus, and had ’em 
standing in line for the early show. 

Jean. 


RKO 

LOS ANGELES 
(Reviewed Jan. 24) 

Vaude bills here have been above 
par for the past two weeks, and 
the current bill of five acts will 
contribute more prestige and ac- 
cordingly pull in future dollars 
quicker to this house. 

Tillis and LaRue opened. Flash 
act, and better than good. Five 
dancing cuties and okay. Billed 
team scored nicely with some well- 
delivered dancing. 

Fritz and Jean Hubert in deuce 
spot landed in double forte style. 
It’s a sure antidote for the Vol- 
stead Blues plus a flock of laughs. 

Curly Burns offered a skit titled 
“Chicago” and clicked in cyclonic 
tempo. The black-face comic was 
capably assisted by a duo of as- 
sistants and his laugh vehicle is 
just that. 

Eddie Pardo, delineator of songs 
and some comedy, had everything 
his own way and could have stayed 
longer. A good bet on any bill. 

Beehee and Rubyette Company 
sold their strength and agility 
wares for full value. A fitting 
closer. 

“Dance Hall” (Radio Pictures) 
on the screen. 

Business excellent as is consis- 
tently the case. 

Eddie Meredith. 


CONTRACT FOR SPARKS 

Ned Sparks has been signed to 
a long-term contract by Radio 
Pictures. 


CHINESE THEATRE 

HOLLYWOOD 
(Reviewed Jan. 25) 

A1 Norman steps out of the 
Abe Lyman Orchestra with a 
limber-leg dance to offer which is 
great stuff, and thereby A1 saves 
the whole proceedings, entitled 
“The Kit Kat Club,” from being 
just another jazz band program 
without an outstanding moment. 

The girl dancer with the outfit, 
Lucille Page, is both good and 
with some new steps, rating, well 
above average, but without Al’s 
limber-leg stuff she alone wouldn’t 
pull it up above a routine affair. 

One thing is certain, the con- 
clusion being warranted by the 
applause given Norman and Miss 
Page, and that is that the pic- 
ture audiences are hungry for 
stage entertainment of the right 
sort. These two took very nice 
hands indeed, and lesser but still 
warm applause was accorded other 
interpolated solos and duets. The 
band numbers were the least en- 
thusiastically received of all the 
offerings. 

The curtain went up on the one 
setting of the presentation, a very 
neatly arranged black and white 
set, with the not uncustomary 
staircases to right and left. Open- 
ing number was “Chant of the 
Jungle” with Phil Neeley, a mem- 
ber of the band, singing a chorus 
of it through a megaphone. 

Ted and Jack Dale, also from 
among the band boys, then did a 
xylophone and p’iano duet, follow- 
ing it up with the piano and a 
vocal rendition of “That’s Her 
Now.” Their comedy was not 
overdone and they rated the time 
given them. 

Lucille Page then came on for 
her first number, arrayed in a cos- 
tume, the what-there-was-of-it be- 
ing silver. Pretty and shapely, 
Miss Page had on tap some con- 
trolled kicks and acrobatic stunts 
which had a delightful element of 
newness and were well sold, mer- 
iting her a good hand. 

Abe Lyman then took the spot- 
light by doing a drum number 
with the piano for accompaniment. 

Then came the highlight of the 
stage show, A1 Norman’s limber- 
leg dance. This boy has a per- 
sonality which he sells admirably, 
and the unaffected and easy man- 
ner in which he offers the ludi- 
crous moments of his dance, com- 
bined with real ability, mark him 
for a bet sure to please. The cus- 
tomers demanded and got an en- 
core and would have liked more. 

Phil Neeley followed, singing 
“Love, Your Spell Is Every- 
where” in a nice baritone, and 
Miss Page came back in Dutch 
pantaloons and waist and with 
some more new steps. There were 


GEORGE and FLORENCE 

BALLET MASTER and MISTRESS 
Australia’s Largest Theatre 

— THE STATE, SYDNEY— 

PRODUCING WEEKLY CHANGE NOW 34TH WEEK 

And Still Going Strong 

Address — State Theatre, Sydney, N. S. W., Australia 


PHIL SYLVIA 

WHITE and NOIR 

TENOR SOPRANO 

Booked Solid Over R-K-O Circuit In “Songs and Steps” 


some nifties among them, and she 
deservedly took a good hand at 
the conclusion as well as applause 
moments along the route. 

Finale was another fast number 
by the band, with individual mem- 
bers of the group interpolating 
featured moments. The best of 
these were the playing of two 
clarinets by one member, and the 
old standby blatancy of the trom- 
bone. Abe Lyman apparently has 
improved in the art of catching 
his tossed-about drumsticks since 
he was at the Uptown here, miss- 
ing only every once and awhile 
at this matinee instead of constant- 
ly, as used to be the case. 

There is one extremely weak 
point about the presentation, and 
that is the lack of a master-of- 
ceremonies. Such a functionary, 
brightening up as he does what 
otherwise develops into a mere rou- 
tine of offerings, is badly missed, 
and the chill with which he house 
received the orchestrations was due 
no doubt in part to this fact. The 
lack was especially noticeable 
without a leader in front upon 
whom one’s eyes could be cen- 
tered during the numbers, as the 
gesticulations of such an individ- 
ual always relieve what otherwise 
becomes a matter for restlessness. 
A cracking good m. c. with a 
pleasing personality and a gift of 
humor, would do much to build 
up this outfit. 

The feature picture was M-G-M’s 
“The Rogue Song,” starring ve- 
hicle for Lawrence Tibbett, and 
the house was capacity, as has 
been the case since its opening and 
as, so it looks, will be the case 
for some time to come. 

A. H. F. 

LOEW’S STATE 
LOS ANGELES 
(Reviewed Jan. 24) 

The “Trees Idea” used the well 
known musical composition of 
that name for its theme, and 
opened in one before a black 
drop, the center figure of which 
was a luminous tree. On each 
side were panels which were un- 
veiled at intervals to show various 
varieties of trees. 

The band was in the pit, under 
the baton of m. c. Georgie Stoll. 
Georgie, however, made no an- 
nouncements in this “Idea” except 
for his own specialty. Acting as 
a sort of non-speaking m. c. was 
Frieda Sullivan, costumed as a 
woodsprite, carrying bow-and-ar- 
row. She whistled bird-calls. 

Ted Reicard, tenor, and Christel 
LeVine, soprano, registered good 
voices and personality when they 
appeared to sing the themie. The 
panels revealed “Shade of the Old 
Apple Tree,” with a couple dressed 
1900 style; a banana tree with a 


pair of hula dancers, one of whom 
faw down at this show; a cocoanut 
palm with that ace adagio pair 
Mavis and Ted, and “Trail of the 
Lonesome Pine,” with a pair of 
girls dressed mountaineer. Then 
came the girls of the line in a 
flash number, costumed in palm 
headdress and bark tights. 

Specialty interlude presented 
Jimmy Fawcett, who hoofed a fast 
stepping acrobatic routine that won 
hearty applause, then followed 
Walter Brower in his perennial 
dance number. He does it well, 
but it’s about time he developed 
a new routine. 

Georgie Stoll then stepped up on 
stage with his violin, taking with 
him his drummer, Lou Erickson; 
his bass violinist, Vic Delorey, and 
his pianist, Walter Ruick. They 
dished up “’Tain’t No Sin” and 
“Love, Your Spell Is Every- 
where,” vocalizing choruses. They 
won a great hand. 

Next scene was the land of 
gnomes, butterflies and birds. A 
pair of girls came on with a big 
Fairy Tales book, delivering a tap 
routine, then gave way to the line, 
which dazzled the fern part of the 
audience in rose-colored costumes. 
They gave a pleasing, well-bal- 
anced routine of formations. 

Next, Terrell and Hanley in 
their dumb comedy-acro act, 
(Continued on Page 15) 


PAUL MALL 

“HOT DOMINOES” Idea 
Elsinore Theatre, Salem, Ore. 
Thanks to Fanchon and Marco 


SYLVIA DOREE 

Featured in 
Fanchon and Marco’s 

“JAZZ TEMPLE IDEA” 
Tabor Grand, Denver, Colo. 


MURIEL 

STRYKER 

Fanchon and Marco’s 

DESERT IDEA 


TOOTS NOVELLO 

Fanchon and Marco’s 
“Overtures” Idea 
Direction W m. Morris 


FANCHON AND MARCO 
PRESENT 


EULA BURROFF BOB 


Featured in “Eyes” Idea 
Loew’s State, Los Angeles, 
This Week 


LOUISE MANNING 

THE VERSATILITY GIRL 

“OVERTURE” IDEA 

THIS WEEK FOX THEATRE, SAN FRANCISCO 
THANKS TO FANCHON AND MARCO 


ARTISTIC SCENIC ADVERTISING CURTAINS 

BY FAR THE BEST IN AMERICA— CURTAIN PRIVILEGES BOUGHT FOR CASH OR SCENERY 
1215 BATES AVE., HOLLYWOOD, CALIF. Phone OLympia 2914 CHAS. F. THOMPSON SCENIC CO. 





SATURDAY, FEB. 1, 1930 


INSIDE FACTS OF STAGE AND SCREEN 


PAGE FIFTEEN 


RADIO- 

KEITH- 

ORPHEUM 

CIRCUIT 
OR THEATRES 

VAUDEVILLE 

EXCHANGE 

General Booking 
Offices 

PALACE THEATRE 
BUILDING 
166-i Broadway 


RKO FILM 
BOOKING 
CORP. 

General Booking 
Offices 

1560 Broadway 
NEW YORK 



CORPORATION 

1560-1564 Broadway, New York 

Telephone Exchange: Bryant 9300 

Cable Address: ‘ 'RADIOKBITH” 


RKO 

PRODUCTIONS 

Inc. 

Producers and 
Distributors of 

RADIO 

PICTURES 

LAUNCHING 
AN ERA OF 
ELECTRICAL 
ENTERTAINMENT 

1660 Broadway 
New York 



(Continued from Page 14) 
scoring big in the laugh percent- 
ages; a skillful, well-oiled routine. 

Nayon’s Birds, a performing 
parrot act, came next, in a tropic 
woodland setting. A gorgeous 
feathered display of numerous 
birds, many of which performed 
very clever tricks. The customers 
liked it. 

Opening the finale, the girls of 
the line came on in pastel shaded 
chiffon costumes, then everybody 
on, many of the girls going up 
ropes, taking parrots up, Mavis 
and Ted making adagio center 
stage, all for a good flash finale. 

The picture was M-G-M’s 1929 
Hollywood Rveu.e 

FIFTH AVENUE 

SEATTLE 
(Reviewed Jan. 23) 

The “Let’s Pretend Idea” was a 
weak follow-up to the gorgeous 
“Black and Gold Idea” seen here 
last week. It started out like a 
million, with a finale that had less 
kick to it than the worst of ’em. 

The opening scene, a huge 
pumpkin with the orchestra seated 
in the center and 12 line girls 
with pumpkin heads doing the 
usual routine that was highlighted 
when Rita Lane, a little blonde 
soprano, put the necessary kick 
into the theme number “Let’s 
Pretend.” 

George Green, colored skate 
artist, although not fitting in with 
the Idea in any way, shape, or 
form, more than overstayed his 
limit on the skates, but neverthe- 
less, to his credit, got a deservedly 
good hand. Shorten this up with 
less repeats and he’d go even bet- 
ter. 

A couple of hoofers, George 
Tillyou and George Rogers, had a 
comedy dance offering that could 
have been cut short to better ad- 
vantage. This one dragged con- 
siderably due to its length, and 
for no reason whatsoever Ed 
Chaney, co-producer of the idea, 
also did some hoofing. 

The girls did a semi-Tiller 
number that registered fair and 
they were entitled to what they 
got. 

The outstanding bits on the bill 
was Rita Lane’s singing and Flor- 
ence Forman’s high kicking. 

A couple of the line girls in a 
specialty acted like they hated each 
other, which offset their otherwise 
fair offering. This one needs 
jerking up badly before it hits 


east, with lots of rehearsal slated 
for the line. At present it’s pretty 
weak. 

Peabody started out early with 
his specialty, doing a violin solo 
with one of the boys at the piano, 
playing and singing Berlin’s 
"Love,” theme song of “The Tres- 
passer,” topping it off with “Rio 
Rita” in which Joe Woodbury, 
Billy Barrett and Ralph Meyer 
joined together in a novelty quin- 
tette of strings and song to a nice 
response. , 

Eddie fitted in later with his 
banjo specialties using “I’m A 
Dreamer,” “Talking Picture of 
You” and “Sunny Side Up,” 
starting these off with the sextette 
from “Lucia.” 

Peabody’s banjo work was the 
outstanding offering of the presen- 
tation and naturally garnered the 
most applause. 

Irrespective of the quality and 
length of the stage, offering, the 
public laid their dough on the line 
to see and hear Peabody smack 
the old banjo. It’s what they 
come to see and hear and if they 
don’t get it, or enough of it, they 
go out mumbling. 

They want anywhere from eight 
to ten numbers from Peabody in- 
cluding the “St. Louis Blues,” but 
he’s finally got ’em to lay off the 
latter, for a while anyway, but 
they’ve got to have plenty banjo, 
and whoever is at fault can take 
this tip if Peabody’s stay here is 
to be as successful as his first 
week. 

The screen feature was “The 
Bishop Murder Case.” 

Jean. 


KEN DAILEY WEDS 


Ken Dailey, general Jnanager for 
the Bert Levey offices, was mar- 
ried Thursday, January 23, to Ara- 
belle Wiles, a non-professional. 
The ceremony took place in the 
Saint Augustine Church. Dailey 
is 35 years old and his bride 26. 
The wedding culminated a romance 
of two years. 

NANCY DUE BACK 


SAN FRANCISCO, Jan. 30.— 
Nancy Carroll, Paramount star, 
is expected here this week on a 
return voyage from Honolulu 
where she has been vacationing 
with her husband. Jack Kirkland. 
Kirkland returned several days 
ago. 

SUPPORTING DIX 

Henry Armetta, Italian actor 
with 16 years’ film experience, 
will enact a supporting role in 
Richard Dix’s second radio star- 
ring vehicle, “I Love You.” 


Meiklejohn Bros. 

ASSOCIATED VAUDEVILLE MANAGERS 

Fourth Floor, Spreckels Bldg. 

Phones: 714 So. Hill St. 

TRinity 2217, TRinity 2218 LOS ANGELES 

VAUDEVILLE AND PICTURE HOUSE 
ENGAGEMENTS AVAILABLE 
FOR STANDARD ACTS 


WANTED — Acts Suitable for Vaudeville, Picture 
House Presentations, Clubs and Talkies 

THEATRICAL 
AGENCY 


AL WAGER 


(Artists’ Representative) 

221 LOEW’S STATE BLDG., LOS ANGELES, CALIF. 
Phone: VAndike 3619 



‘LOVE PARADE’ 

(Continued from Page 4) 
lyrics. 

The story, which is quite ade- 
quate for operetta purposes, was 
by Ernst Vadja, with the libretto 
by Guy Bolton. 

CASTING DIRECTORS’ 
VIEWPOINT: Maurice Cheva- 

lier has added to his usual fern 
appeal a chance to display himself 
in various uniforms, and to put 
across his personality in several 
sequences well thought out to this 
purpose. All of which should 
please his fans. 

Jeannette MacDonald is a most 
pleasing leading lady for him, be- 
ing pretty, appealing, convincing 
and a real singer. 

Lupino Lane contributes no 
small share of the comedy, his al- 
lotment being the lower portion of 
it, and his comedy falling prowess 
comes in for good response. 

Opposite him is Lillian Roth, 
who does her part in good stand- 
ardized stage fashion. 

There is a Greek chorus of cabi- 
net ministers, among them being 
Lionel Belmore, Eugene Pallette 
and Albert Roccardi. 

Edgar Norton is well cast as the 
chamberlain. 


DANCE HALL’ 

(Continued from Page 4) 
it is to be believed that he would 
have had some touching sequences 
to his credit. 

Jane Murfin and J. Walter Ru- 
ben did the scenario and dialogue. 

CASTING DIRECTORS’ 
VIEWPOINT: Arthur Lake did 

the same as he always does, un- 
pleasantly-pitched voice and all. 
Not so good. 

Olive Borden’s voice registers 
clearly, but her performance was 
one of those one-two-three emote 
procedures. 

Joe Cawthorn, if any one doesn’t 
happen to know it, is a comedian 
that the talkies can use as often 
as they want without fear of over- 
doing it. Into the frequently dull 
footage of this picture he burst 
like Old Dutch Cleanser to 
brighten and sparkle. The picture 
was all his. 

Margaret Seddon was natural- 
ness itself in the mother role, and 
easily took credit for bringing to 
herself the major portion of the 
audience’s sympathy. 

Ralph Emerson’s recitation of 
lines was just recitation, but ndt 
nearly so much so as that of 
Helen Kaiser, who was not un- 
reminiscent of a Saturday night’s 
entertainment at the little Red 
Schoolhouse. 

Lee Moran was well cast as a 
soda-jerker, and completing the 
cast were Tom O’Brien, Natalie 
Joyce and Patricia Caron. 

‘ROGUE SONG’ 

(Continued from Page 4) 
EXHIBITORS’ VIEWPOINT: 
If you have any ability whatso- 
ever at exploitation, this is a sure- 
fire cooking for any first run 
house, either for a run or for a 
week or two. All you have to 
sell is Tibbett’s voice and the new 
type of screen entertainment for 
the opening shows, and word-of- 
mouth should do the rest. 

PRODUCERS’ VIEWPOINT: 
Lionel Barrymore has scored a 
distinct triumph in the direction 
of this picture. His .neat balanc- 
ing of the Tibbett voice with the 
story interest is splendid, and 
many of the scenes have been han- 


HARRY WEBER - SIMON AGENCY 

PALACE THEATRE BUILDING, NEW YORK CITY 

MANAGING ONLY THE BEST 

IN 

VAUDEVILLE and PICTURES 
HOLLYWOOD OFFICE 

BANK OF HOLLYWOOD BUILDING 

Corner Hollywood Boulevard and Vine Street 

HO. 2181— Telephones— HO. 2182 

HARRY WEBER 


died in a manner which keeps in- 
terest moving at a rate far better 
than, it is to be guessed, was in- 
dicated by the script. 

Other credits are “Based upon 
the operetta ‘Gypsy Love' by 
Franz Lehar, Dr. A. M. Willner 
and Robert Bodansky; Story l)y 
Frances Marion and John Colton; 
Suggested by Wells Root; Music 
by Franz Lehar and Herbert 
Stothart; Lyrics by Clifford 
Grey.” 

CASTING DIRECTORS’ 
VIEWPOINT: Lawrence Tib- 

bett has firmly taken his place as 
a screen star, so long as music 
lasts at the least, and possibly 
much longer. 

Catherine Dale Owen, in the 
fern lead opposite him, is again in 
a part which calls for iciness of 
manner and considerable hauteur. 
In these roles she is consistently 
in character and excellent. It 
would be interesting, however, to 
see her for once in a more emo- 
tional part, just to see what she 
could do with it. 

Next to Tibbett’s acting, the 
neatest work is done by Florence 
Lake. The part, that of the 
rogue’s sister, is very small in 
footage, comparatively speaking, 
being only one sequence of dis- 
tress at her betrayal, and another 
one of her death. But it stands 
out. 

Judith Bosseli is exceptionally 
well cast as a haughty countess; 
Ulrich Haupt plays a short but ac- 
ceptable heavy; and Elsa Alsen 
takes fullest advantage of the lim- 
ited opportunities of a mother role. 

Satisfactorily doing other minor 
parts are Nance O’Neil, Lionel 
Belmore, Wallace MacDonald, 


Kate Price, H. A. Morgan, Burr 
Macintosh and James Bradbury, 

i r - 

Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy 
have frequent cut-ins, doing the 
same kind of stuff they usually 
do but this time in Russian 
clothes. It is not up to their av- 
erage for laughs, and the casting 
of this duo of ace comedians in 
the picture is questionable. They 
have become so firmly established 
and familiar in their own two-reel, 
modern-day field that their pres- 
ence could not help but jerk the 
audience out of the illusion of 
reality whenever they appeared. 

The Albertina Rasch Ballet had 
a very pretty toe dance to offer, 
exceedingly well shot as to angles. 

CRISP WITH R-K-O 


Donald Crisp has been signed 
by Radio Pictures to direct “Cook- 
ing Her Goose,” which will mark 
the reunion of the popular silent 
day team of Mary Astor and 
Lloyd Hughes. William Sistrom, 
who recently went from the post 
of the Pathe general manager to 
that of associate producer for R- 
K-O, will have this as his first 
supervisiorial assignment under his 
new contract. Starting date is ten- 
tatively set for February 12. 

NEW YORKER IN “BRIDE” 


Arthur Hammerstein has with- 
drawn Robert Chisholm from the 
cast of the New York, play, “Sweet 
Adeline,” and assigned him to a 
featured role in “Bride 66,” mu- 
sical production which he will 
make for United Artists. 


PATRICK and MARSH 

(AOEN0Y) 

VAUDEVILLE— ORCHESTRAS 

WANTED! 

ACTS SUITABLE FOR PICTURE HOUSE PRESENTATION 
AND CLUBS 

WHITE — WIRE — CALL 

807*8 Majestic Theatre Bldg., 845 South Broadway, Los Angeles 
Phone TUcker 2140 


Walter Trask 

WANTS STANDARD ACTS and ENTERTAINERS for 
THEATRES, CLUBS, LODGES and SMAROFF-TRASK 
PRESENTATIONS 

WALTER TRASK THEATRICAL AGENCY 

1102 Commercial Exchange Bldg. 

410 West Eighth Street Los Angelas 

Telephone TUcker 1680 


WILLS-CUNNINGHAM 


Gladstone 9502 


7016 Hollywood Boulevard Studio of Dancing 

Professionals Taught by Professionals 
Routines Created and Perfected for Single, Double and Ensemble 
Dancing Acts 

Walter Wills Theatrical Employment Agency 

Talent Booked for Pictures, Vaudeville, Production, Clubs 


Ackerman & Harris 

EXECUTIVE OFFICES 

THIRD FLOOR, PHELAN BLDG. 


Ella Herbert Weston, Booking Manager 

Market, Grant and O’FarreU Sts. SAN FRANCISCO 

LOS ANGELES — 20 Film Exchange Bldg. 

Washington and Vermont — Telephone: BEacon 7966 


Artists and Acts Register For 
Theatrical Bookings, Orchestras and 
Club Entertainment 


IRA F. GAY AGENCY 


206 Majestic Theatre Building 
845 South Broadway 
FA 3421 Los Angeles 


SATURDAY, FEB. 1, 1930 


PAGE SIXTEEN 


INSIDE FACTS OF STAGE AND SCREEN 




Youngstown Vindi 

ator said 


“Persona 
a, " e cley- 


Detroit, 


At the Palace, N. Y., 
Zits said — “Carries all 
the comedy and puts a 
kick into the * show 
where it needs it !’’ 

“Billboard” skid — 
“Stands out as the 
strongest personality. 
Tough moll number is several pegs 
higher than a classic.” 


Variety, State Lake, Chicago 
“Loop,” said — “Stood out as the in- 
dividual hit of the show.” 


Jean in “Inside Facts,” Seattle, 
W ash., said — 

“Reaped a harvest of 
laughs. Her tough 
number topped off, in 
great shape, her clever 
interpretations.” 



The ORIGINAL 


“BOOP-POOP-A-DOOP” 

GIRL! 



CHIC KENNEDY | 


HEADLINING l 0 s\£ g ?Les 

WEEK OF JANUARY 30th 

PERSONAL DIRECTION:- JIMMY MURPHY 



Scanned from the collection of 

Karl Thiede 


Coordinated by the 

Media History Digital Library 
www.mediahistoryproj ect.org